 By: Lena Uccello
In 2015, Wethersfield High School teacher, Susan Coco, introduced the blood drive. Held annually three times a year, the school continues to make a difference by collecting blood and saving lives. Before coming to Wethersfield, Coco taught at Cheshire High. It was here that she first got involved with the event and officially began helping out. “I really wanted to get involved with the school environment, so that was actually my first extracurricular activity I got involved in,” said Coco. Though the drive was a way for her to make a difference within the community itself, the real reason behind Coco’s involvement was much more personal. Her father, a life-long doner, would donate blood every 56 days. At a young age, Ms. Coco would accompany him to these drives and embrace the good deed he was committing. He set an example and gave her the motive to give back. “He’s probably one of the main reasons why I thought the blood drive was a worthy cause, a worthy reason to get involved,” she said. After her transfer to Wethersfield High, Coco realized the school did not host an annual blood drive, so she took a stand, got permission and made it happen. Wethersfield High School senior Anisa Zoto has been working alongside Coco, at the front line of this event, for the last three years. With her love of the medical field and the help of her science teacher Mr. Chatfield, Zoto knew she had to take part in this cause. “The blood drive isn’t necessarily me doing anything medically involved, but it’s still helping people which is all medicine is really,” said Zoto. It was after the pandemic hit in 2020 that this event became nearly impossible. Blood banks became super low on supply and with that, the lives of all those in need became at risk. “According to the New York Blood Center, which provides blood to hospitals in the greater New York City area, the gap between blood needed and what's being donated is now averaging around 8,000 donations per month.” But this news didn’t stop Coco or the other coordinators at WHS from making it happen. They found ways to hold the drive, no matter what it took. Instead of taking place during the school year, the team redirected to the elementary schools through summer break. It was important that they still be able to make a difference, even amidst the rising COVID-19. With her passion and determination, Coco has already scheduled this year’s drive. As of now, it is planned to be held on December 15, 2021 from 7:40am-2:00pm. If you are interested in donating or volunteering, students, or teachers can sign up during lunch waves or email Ms. Coco at [email protected]. “Until you try it, you shouldn’t say no. Little reasons like I’m afraid of needles is not a good reason because if you were on the receiving end of needing blood, then you’re hoping that people are going to give,” said Coco. As the saying goes, “you’ll ever know until you try,” so reach out and help. Don’t want to or cannot donate? Volunteer. There are always multiple ways to make a difference and you can be one of them. As Zoto said, “It’s easy, it only takes a couple hours, and those couple hours save hundreds of people.”
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 Source: Good Housekeeping by: Yvonna Rodriguez
Compared to just ten years ago, the way we watch television has drastically changed. More and more streaming services are coming out and the idea of cable television is slowly dwindling. Here at WHS, most watch television on Netflix rather than on something like cable. Netflix has a wide variety of content, which is why it is so appealing to so many different types of people. Whether it's a movie or a tv show, people are always able to find something to watch. In an interview, senior Andrea Moyano talked about her recent love of the Netflix Original “Young Royals.” When asked why she loves it so much she said, “It’s really good, I got very emotionally attached to the characters, it’s really short, and it made me cry.” I also spoke to senior Annika Brown who has recently been obsessed with Netflix’s new movie trilogy “Fear Street.” Brown mentions that she was drawn to these movies because as she explains, “These are all horror movies, but they're also mysteries.” Students are not the only ones who use Netflix, teachers here at WHS enjoy it as well. Social Studies teacher John Sand said he often watches titles under the drama genre. When asked what he likes about drama series, he said “I like the content and the acting.” English teacher Siobhan DeGray also shared with me her love of Netflix. When it comes to what she watches the most often, she said it would probably be “Criminal Minds''. She went on to say, “There are so many episodes that I forget what happens, so it's always entertaining.” DeGray mentioned there's a lot more to love about Netflix than just the content. She talked about how she enjoys the program itself, saying “I like that I can set controls on there. Like my kids can have their own accounts.” DeGray also takes advantage of Netflix’s safety features to ensure her young children don't watch anything rated higher than PG-13. As popular as Netflix is, not everyone prefers to use it as their source of television. English teacher Marc Pfister, who teaches Film as Literature, talked to me about how he thinks streaming services can be detrimental to the future of the film industry. He said, “I am against movies going directly to the streaming services and not going to the movie theaters.” He went on to say, “It is cutting out the idea of a movie theater and I think there are some movies that you have to actually see on the screen they were made for.” Here at WHS, Netflix is a pivotal part of many people's lives. Although it is not everyone's first method of access to television, it definitely is the front runner.  Source: Commonapp.org By: Rei Betoja and Antonio Contreras
Senior year means a couple things; graduation, final year, kings of the school, and finally college. Senior year starts with a race to complete the college process and prepare for next year. The college essay, letters of recommendation, transcripts, and much more all used to advertise yourself and hopefully sell yourself to them with the hope of an acceptance letter. Senior have embarked out on this journey and we wanted to see how the process has affected them as the deadlines approach. COVID has affected many things in our day-to-day lives which now feel normal as if we had done it for our whole lives, but one of these changes has included the college process. With colleges usually requesting your SAT scores, college essay, transcripts, and letters of recommendation, COVID has changed this process dramatically. Some colleges in the United States, such as UCONN, have stopped requesting some of these such as your SAT score. Choosing where to go and what to study is only the start to the process, but this decision alone is a struggle for many students. This common struggle,in fact, affects about one third of college students who change their major within school. We talked to Wethersfield senior Giankarlos Dejesus to get some insight on how he felt about what the hardest decision he needed to make was, “Figuring out where exactly I want to go and how far.” He continued on about how COVID has helped him, stating, “As well as the fact that it has affected whether or not you needed SAT scores.” In 2021, a total of just 43 percent of students submitted their SAT scores which dropped 33% from 77% in 2020. This is due to the fact that 90% of college app schools do not request them. So, for many students, who may feel as if their scores may have kept them out of contention for some schools, this has made it much easier for them. College comes with a bunch of new experiences and meeting new people. “Meeting new people and getting new connections,” is what Gionkarlos is looking forward to next year. But before that, they must take on the challenge the college process imposes on all those looking to go to college. So we asked school counselor Mrs. Lindsay what advice she has for students. “Do a lot of research, so you know who you are and if they are a good fit for you.” You will spend the next four+ years of your life here, so find the right one. For the process, she recommends, “Take responsibility on the things you do because everything you do is up to you.” This process is extremely important and the last thing you wanna do is fall behind.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television by: Yvonna Rodriguez
Compared to just ten years ago, the way we watch television has drastically changed. More and more streaming services are coming out and the idea of cable television is slowly dwindling. Here at WHS, most watch television on Netflix rather than on something like cable. Netflix has a wide variety of content, which is why it is so appealing to so many different types of people. Whether it's a movie or a tv show, people are always able to find something to watch. In an interview, senior Andrea Moyano talked about her recent love of the Netflix Original “Young Royals.” When asked why she loves it so much she said, “It’s really good, I got very emotionally attached to the characters, it’s really short, and it made me cry.” I also spoke to senior Annika Brown who has recently been obsessed with Netflix’s new movie trilogy “Fear Street.” Brown mentions that she was drawn to these movies because as she explains, “These are all horror movies, but they're also mysteries.” Students are not the only ones who use Netflix, teachers here at WHS enjoy it as well. Social Studies teacher John Sand said he often watches titles under the drama genre. When asked what he likes about drama series, he said “I like the content and the acting.” English teacher Siobhan DeGray also shared with me her love of Netflix. When it comes to what she watches the most often, she said it would probably be “Criminal Minds''. She went on to say, “There are so many episodes that I forget what happens, so it's always entertaining.” DeGray mentioned there's a lot more to love about Netflix than just the content. She talked about how she enjoys the program itself, saying “I like that I can set controls on there. Like my kids can have their own accounts.” DeGray also takes advantage of Netflix’s safety features to ensure her young children don't watch anything rated higher than PG-13. As popular as Netflix is, not everyone prefers to use it as their source of television. English teacher Marc Pfister, who teaches Film as Literature, talked to me about how he thinks streaming services can be detrimental to the future of the film industry. He said, “I am against movies going directly to the streaming services and not going to the movie theaters.” He went on to say, “It is cutting out the idea of a movie theater and I think there are some movies that you have to actually see on the screen they were made for.” Here at WHS, Netflix is a pivotal part of many people's lives. Although it is not everyone's first method of access to television, it definitely is the front runner.  Souce: Pexels By: Tej Ashworth, Camilo Munera, and Diego Rodriguez
Last year, Homecoming was canceled and this year, it is still in the air. It’s been said that it’s not going to happen, however the Class of 2022 seniors at WHS are fighting for one. As of recently, there has been a creation of a senior day in lieu of a pep rally. To be honest, information on homecoming was easy to find, it wasn’t as difficult of a question to answer as it was thought to be. An answer you all may not like, but an answer nonetheless. We talked to Ross Tine, class president of the senior class of 2022, who has been spearheading this movement to represent everyone. By far he has proven himself to be a capable leader, being by the students, for the students in an attempt to get us seniors anything close to a Homecoming, even if we cannot have a proper one. When talking to Ross, we got a lot of insight into the inner workings of what was going on. There were a lot of questions asked, and an excellent conversation was held. We learned that an overall budget was to be determined and that the ideal location would be in the cafeteria as normal. Senior Day wouldn’t replace Homecoming, just the pep rally. When asked about senior day, Tine said, “It’s meant to be a time of fun for the seniors. I thought it would be amazing to have a day just for us.” Senior Day was held on Cottone field on Wednesday, Oct. 14, with games and activities for seniors include a lunch on the patio of Cottone. We also talked to the principal, Mrs. O’Connor, about the possibility of a homecoming. O’Connor told us about the possibility of a traditional homecoming. “The difficulty is that the rules we currently have on us [with COVID], take away normal.” It is no secret that schools all around are having homecomings, so what prevents us from having a homecoming? Well, the principal had addressed this: “We are operating under a strict interpretation of COVID guidelines.” However with an uptick in cases and a new COVID variant, O’Connor said, “It makes it difficult to say ‘let’s have a homecoming.’” The takeaway is that, with COVID, with having strict guidelines, having a homecoming inside would be difficult. The only way we could have a homecoming is if the school dishes out the money to get the tents, the heaters, the food, the DJ, and that is just not in the budget. O’Connor said, “With outside events comes a lot of expense. It’s a heavy logistical burden, and monetary burden, and all the money that used to exist for the budget during COVID doesn’t exist. ” Something like a homecoming, while usually it has minimal budget attached to it, now would have a prom-like expense. Between cost, COVID, and weather, it’s safe to say that there is barely a chance for a homecomingthis year, but let’s just be glad that we can still have the senior picnic and prom still.  John (right) and Gina (left) in front of Salute Restaurant at Tide kick off event. By: Lena Uccello In March 2021, two Wethersfield High School teachers, John and Gina Gallivan, started the Tide (Together, Inspired and Devoted to Encouraging) Cancer Foundation. Based in Connecticut and throughout a variety of local hospitals, this non-profit continues to support young women coping with cancer. Co-founder Gina Gallivan wanted to give back the love and support she had gotten before. “Being a two time cancer survivor and recognizing how wonderful it was to receive care packages, help with meals, nice little things to brighten the day throughout treatment, I knew that once I got better I really wanted to do this for other people,” said Gina. When starting this foundation, the couple’s main goal was to make, donate and deliver care packages to women battling cancer all around the state, and that is what they continue to do. “We’re trying to provide them some comfort, some care, knowing that people care about them, to help ease the challenges of treatment and recovery,” said Mrs. Gallivan. This past June, the couple held their first kick off event at Salute Restaurant in Hartford, Conn. Being one of the foundation’s sponsors, the restaurant covered the cost of food and also supplied them with their patio for the day. And aside from hosting fundraising events the foundation has also begun creating ties with many cancer/medical centers. “We partnered with two hospitals so far, Hartford Hospital, their cancer center, where Mrs. Gallivan had some treatment done. And St. Francis Hospital in Hartford, where another woman on our board had her treatment done,” said John.  It is through these health and medical centers that the packages are able to be delivered and distributed amongst patients. In July, the foundation’s committee made a special delivery to the Helen and Harry Gray Cancer Center and just last week took another visit to St. Francis. Though they only started 6 months ago, both John and Gina have already made a huge impact on the lives of many women battling cancer. They are happy with where the foundation has gone, but can’t wait to see where it will go. They say, as of right now, their main objective is to become more well known, not just here in Wethersfield but all across Connecticut. The more the word is spread the more women that can be helped. “That’s the biggest goal, is that there are plenty of people who are dealing with cancer right now. Most of whom have no idea that our foundation even exists. So, our challenge I guess will be to raise awareness of the organization, so that more people will take advantage of the care package offering we have,” said Mr. Gallivan.  Tide stands for Together, Inspired and Devoted to Encouraging women coping with cancer all across Connecticut.
As stated on the Tide Cancer Foundation site, “Our organization’s name is inspired by the healing power of the ocean. The ebb and flow of the tide reminds us that renewal and rejuvenation are part of the cycle of life, and that each of us is part of something magnificent and wonderful, something life-giving and purposeful.” The Gallivans purpose has been to make a difference in the lives of those around them, specifically in women fighting this horrific disease. This could be your purpose too, all you have to do is reach out and help. There is a limitless supply of good we can do in this world and John and Gina have become part of it. To learn more about the Tide Cancer Foundation visit: https://www.tidecancerfoundation.org/  By: Cristin Blake
With summer quickly approaching, you tend to wonder how teachers will spend their time now that they don’t have to worry about students. You would think that the only things teachers do are grade papers and read books, but they know how to have some fun in the sun. Teachers at Wethersfield High School worry so much about what they are going to do for the next upcoming school year. However, Doris Duggins, a WHS social sciences teacher, also knows how to relax and enjoy her time off. Mrs. Duggins has an endless amount of trips planned for their summer vacation, with a splash of teaching for the fun of it. She says “I want to take time to go to the beach and visit my daughter in Florida, and then go to North Carolina to see my sister.” After all that traveling, she plans to come back to Wethersfield and teach a social justice class through a book to 7th and 8th graders. It seems she has a lot of things planned for the summer but I know she’ll get it all done. Sometimes teachers just need a break from their students and relieve some of the stress from the last school year. After all, teaching is their job. Brian Turner, a physical education and health teacher here at the high school, is going to try and figure out how he should spend his time this summer now that he is, as he puts it “unemployed.” He says “I’ll be spending a lot of time with my two girls, I have two and a four year old at home, hopefully playing a lot of golf, and just try to enjoy some time off.” It’s always good for teachers to enjoy some quality time with their family because they deserve it. After spending all that time with students, they deserve the break. However, this isn’t the case for every teacher at the high school. Michael Maltese, athletic director and assistant principal at WHS, has a lot of work that he has to do to prepare for the upcoming school year in the fall. He says “I will be working this summer here at the high school; we have our new principal Ms. O’Connor coming in and we get ready to welcome kids back to a full year.” While there is work that he still has to do, he’s still going to try to find some time to get out and spend time with his family. He hopes to spend lots of time with his two daughters, one age 9 and the other age 12, by taking them out to Six Flags, and hopefully head down to the Jersey Shore. Many teachers and staff members have so many fun things planned for their summer vacation. With a mixture of traveling and working, they’ll get to relax and enjoy their next couple months off before the school year rolls around again.  By Charles Hayes
In junior year of high school, “I was getting ready to make plans to visit colleges, talk to coaches about playing soccer and just getting a sense of where I wanted to go. That all came to an end in March when the pandemic hit. We went from the excitement of going to see what could be the next four years to absolutely nothing. What was the next step? Did all the hard work just go down the drain? After many hours of looking online waiting to see how colleges were preparing for the next step and how they were going to recruit. “Here are the lessons I have learned along the way.” I noticed first that so many colleges were sending not just the average flyer but packets of information with multiple photos to introduce themselves and what they had to offer. I mean it was way above the norm, I was receiving over 3-5 a week from all over the country. I asked a graduate of 2020, Jack Romagnoli about it. “To be honest I may have received 10 total over the course of the 2020 school year.” This is how I actually got first interested in my choice of school. I learned so much about how many schools are actually out there and believe it when I say there is a school for everyone. I just had to go up to Rivier just recently and got to ask Josh Ciarcia, my admissions counselor about how they dealt with the pandemic. “Well we definitely had to switch gears and come up with some ideas that would catch the eye of potential students, I think collectively as a team we did a great job. We implemented more videos of the campus and sent out emails with the link, also instead of just sending out our normal post card we sent out a much larger packet of information and we really saw results from that.” The next step for me was how any college soccer coaches were going to take a look. So we went to the website of NCSA, Next College Student Athlete founded back in 2000 in Chicago, IL. We sent an email and they hooked us up with a specialist there, Ken Marshall and then we set up a zoom meeting. Ken said, “NCSA too was dealing with tons of new students wanting to join because this was the best way for college coaches to look at athletes without being able to see them on the field. So we have taken steps to reach out to all of the colleges to ensure that our clients will get the best possible outcome in this crazy time.” So we went with the MVP program, they had given a huge discount to do Covid, so what would have been $225 a month was $125 a month for one year. This was to make sure that we could get what was needed out to these coaches and it worked. We started it in May and by August I had 5 different coaches scouting me. I did get to go see 4 out of the 5 schools, but when I was asked to come up to see Rivier, it all just fell into place. In the end, all the worries of what could not have happened went away due to all of the colleges, universities and NCSA stepping up for all the incoming freshmen around the U.S. I know how happy I was not only to find my university and get scouted for playing soccer but to do it and commit by December 15 so I could just focus on the rest of my senior year. By David Barajas
For some people, this may be their last year at Wethersfield High School and soon they will be off to college, where they will venture on into the adult world for the first time. Some people may have a difficult time adjusting to college due to it being different from high school. In college, you will have a much more flexible schedule as many classes can be taken in the afternoon or in the morning, depending on you and your choices. You will also have less classes than you did in high school and that means you will have more time to focus on important things or work. Some people may be nervous about going to college because it's something new and it is going to be a new experience for some students. By this time of the year, many students already know what college they will be attending and what they will study for their future career. What's more important now for incoming college freshmen is to prepare for college and its hardships. Some ways you can prepare for college is ask your counselor for advice on college and how it can help you. Another way you can prepare for college is to polish on your time management skills, You will have a lot of more free time which can be good for some people and bad for people who like to put aside work. A final way student can prepare for college is to get a job. Some college tuitions and fees cost alot of money and can put a lot of stress on people to get it paid. Getting a job can help pay some of it and take some of the stress off of you. I decided to ask Corey Malicki, A WHS student about what he was doing to prepare for college, he said “I've been looking online about the different types of majors and careers you can choose between.” I think one of the hardest things about college is choosing a major because there are so many to choose from, but the good thing is that you can always switch your major if you don't like it. How are you preparing for your after high school plans? Comment below!  Source: Hartford Courant by: Aaron Maher and Francesco Moline
The end of an era approaches at a fast pace, after 20 years of WHS Principal Mr. Moore being in office, it’s safe to say that his management of his school could not have been any better. Overseeing the renovation construction with a keen eye, as well as his reaction and efficacy throughout the Coronavirus pandemic are just a few of the many obstacles he has overcome during his time as a principal. He truly is and shall be remembered as a legend to the Wethersfield High School community. It won't be easy to fill such big shoes, moreover it will take a surplus of experience and professionalism to even begin to fill them, which brings us to congratulate our new Wethersfield High School Principal, Mrs Siobhan O’Connor, who has been in school administration for quite some time, most recently as the Principal of Highcrest Elementary School. She first started as a teacher where she grew up in Windsor, then went on to oversee different educational settings and eventually she was promoted to Principal at several different schools. Diving deeper into her credentials, Mrs. O’Connor specifically started as a social studies teacher in Windsor High. When we interviewed her, she made sure to stress that classrooms should be fun and enjoyable, so that kids are willing to learn, and therefore be more successful, which she learned during her time in Windsor. Despite this however, she understands her position as someone who will be leading a very prestigious high school. One promising thing about Mrs. O’Connor is not only her view of education, but her commitment to the class. When we asked for her thoughts on the transition from being teacher to administration, “Once you get pulled from the classroom there's no going back.” We then conducted an Interview with Superintendent Michael Emmett, where he mirrored Mrs. O’Connor’s stellar credentials with her history as a classroom teacher and administrator at multiple school levels. Of course, Mr. Moore is and always will be irreplaceable, but to compare Mrs. O’Connor with Mr. Moore is at best inappropriate, they each have their different strengths which will surely be made clear next year when she is comfortable in her job. Mr. Emmett told us that they have a good relationship as co-workers, and that he personally vouches for her skills and mindset. After interviewing Mrs. O’Connor herself, as well as the influential Mr. Emmett, we went ahead and asked one teacher who had been on the committee that voted for the new principal, Mrs. McKenna. We specifically asked for her viewpoints on the decision, she agreed with it and believed it was very well thought out. We also asked her what she thinks makes Mrs. O'Connor a great fit. She answered that she “thought she fit well because of her past experiences. Not many of the other candidates had nearly the amount of experience she has had”. Being a principal at all three levels of public schools, it was surely an influential factor in the decision. Be sure to welcome Mrs. O’Connor when you see her in the hallways!  by: Ajla Turnadzic
While the class of 2021 were just juniors when we found out about COVID-19, no one really thought it would affect our senior year. However, when our senior year did begin, everything began to change. The hybrid model caused most seniors to just want to stay home. While on the other hand, a few of them stuck to hybrid this entire year. I got to speak to senior Lejla Guster, who has learned in the hybrid model for the whole year. While she said she was in the Wethersfield Public Schools her whole life, she never felt like a year was more different. For some seniors, it was a very “off” year and a year that caused them to lack motivation. March 13 2020 is when it was announced that we were going into quarantine. This was announced via email by Superintendent Micheal Emmett. I asked Guster on how she felt on that day, “It was such a weird day, I remember waking up and I was excited because I was thinking that having a couple days off will be great. I didn’t think much of it.” The two week quarantine quickly turned into four months of remote learning and another almost eight months in the hybrid model. As said, most seniors were sick of going back and forth to school and online. This caused a ton of them to just stay online. However, for some that were fully online, it caused them to struggle with participation, studying, homework, etc. It was a hard adjustment because all of us were raised in an environment where all of our schooling was done in person. We were all 7th graders when we first got our “own” chromebooks but we were 9th graders when we got to actually bring them home. Guster did stay hybrid throughout the year and said, “I would stay home sometimes just because I didn’t want to be alone in class. However, when I was in class with 1 or 2 people, it was still nice because I was able to work better.” The whole year felt like a blur. Some may say, the virus ‘stole’ their senior year of high school and the events that were supposed to be held. Guster had said “We missed out on the pep rally which is what us as seniors were looking forward to. When you're a freshman or a sophomore, it doesn’t really matter to you”. This is the year that was supposed to be one to remember. Now that thankfully we are coming to a full re-opening that is full time in school or full time online, this will cause us to all reconnect. This will cause the seniors to see each other one more time, those could be the last few conversations we ever have with our peers, classmates, and friends. I asked Guster for her opinion regarding her input on seniors who choose not to come back and she had said, “High school is once in a lifetime experience and you will never be able to experience it again”.  By Gino Santilli
As COVID-19 numbers are declining and the number of vaccine applicants have increased, WHS has announced we will be making the transition to going back into the classroom full-time. Underclassmen were welcomed into the classroom March 15 and upperclassmen are to be welcomed back March 29. However, if students are still not comfortable returning, they are allowed to stay a full remote learning. Students, as of publication, will be returning and will be in school for a full five days per week. Many seniors will be returning in hopes to obtain some of their senior year they feel was taken from them. Senior Joe Raposo stated about this year, “It was impacted very hard. I had to stay home and did not get the full senior experience of my last two years of high school and sports, as my senior basketball season was cut short.” Many questions rose when the announcement was made that the kids will be going back to school. We are here today to answer some of those questions. We have interviewed John Gallivan and questioned his approach to full time learning. When Gallivan was asked about precautions, he said, “I will continue to wear my mask, I have had the first dose of my vaccine already with the second one on March 31. I will maintain social distancing as much as possible. My reaction to the first shot was not great and I'm not looking forward to the second shot, but I also recognize that 24 hours of discomfort is a small price to pay to help return our school to normal.” We then asked Gallivan how he would accommodate the few remote learners. He responded that, “I will continue to work with my online students the same way as I always have, whether there are 2 or 20. As teachers we need to make sure that remote learners are still getting the best possible educational experience. With Google Classroom, Khan Academy, and online discussions, remote students really are able to access the class and me as much as students who are sitting in the room.” Many have wondered what some teachers' thoughts were about COVID-19 and the whole situation. “Obviously it is a challenge to teach two distinct groups- students in the building and the ones at home. Nothing about COVID has been easy, and this is just a challenge that we need to overcome as teachers and as students. I think one day we'll look back on this and hopefully be more appreciative of the educational process and the ability to interact with our peers,”Gallivan said. Thank John Gallivan for sharing those words of wisdom with us today. You heard it here first folks. Wethersfield High School is finally making the highly anticipated transition back to full time education. Stay tuned for updates on how this goes!   Apparel and stickers, like the one pictured, are available on their site, and all proceeds go towards the scholarship fund. By: Samara Irizarry and Shanelle Lewis
Wethersfield High School has given many students opportunities for their future once graduating. Students are given local scholarships (Dollars For Scholars) that benefit those that reside in Wethersfield. Unfortunately that is not the case for CREC Open Choice students that also attend WHS. Capital Region Education Council (CREC) is an organization that creates high quality programs for people within cities such as Hartford. This has given a window of opportunity to Hartford students to study in suburban towns. The Dollars for Scholars program has been assisting local students at Wethersfield for years now. It’s always been a go to since it’s only requirement has ever been to attend school at Wethersfield and be a resident of the town. However, nobody has taken the time to consider the students that spend the bulk of their academic years at Wethersfield school’s as CREC open choice students in these scholarships. This was until five former students of WHS: Erin Robles, Yasmin Lazu, Amayia Giscombe, Lauren Mcalister and Kiara Lazu, took the initiative to start The Primary Project. This project focuses on the needs of CREC students at the high school who can’t qualify for a Dollars for Scholars scholarship simply because of their residency. They're creating a new scholarship to help relieve some of the financial burden of college these students may have to carry without it. We interviewed members of the team and they sent their shared responses. “The Primary Project promotes visibility and education on diverse cultures that students might not be aware of. Wethersfield is a majority white town and we want students to hear the stories of their BIPOC peers’ that may be different to their own,” says Yasmin and Amayia. Open choice students at WHS have also expressed their opinions towards this. “I feel like not being able to apply discriminates against the choice students. In a way it reminds us that we are not part of the community although we attend school at WHS and have friends here. It’s sad, but The Primary Project will change that,” says WHS senior and open choice student Lynn Blot. CREC Students have made major contributions towards the Wethersfield Community and this program's goals will help amplify their voices. The Primary Project has three main pillars that they follow: yellow, red and blue. Yellow represents community. “CREC students are a crucial part of our town because they participate in town events, do community service, and contribute lifelong connections.” Red is for advocacy, “In our years at Wethersfield High School we have seen a need for both students and staff to advocate for marginalized communities.” And finally, blue for culture. “We believe it is important that students recognize and value their own cultures as well as all the cultures around them.” The Primary Project uses these core values to help determine recipients of their scholarship. Additionally, members of the program have reported gaining support from Wethersfield High School as well as working closely with social studies teacher Doris Duggins and the school's BSU (Brothers & Sisters United) club. Principal Tom Moore and other staff members at WHS have also conveyed their support towards The Primary Project. Team members Amayia Giscombe and Yasmin Lazu say, “It’s been exciting to see how staff, students, and members of our town have expressed their support.” The community of Wethersfield can help bring awareness to The Primary Project. You can support them by following their Instagram page (@theprimaryproj), sharing their posts or messages, or even purchasing their t-shirts and hand designed stickers in their store. For further information and to buy apparel and gear to support their vision, visit The Primary Projects website: https://www.theprimaryproj.com/  by: Ava Ahmetovic
Living in a pandemic is not the most convenient for the lifestyle most people want and need. Most are confined to the four corners of their house. Since the pandemic started, you can’t see your family, you can’t travel, and you have to keep a mask on 24/7. So if the pandemic was going to end, what is the first thing you would do? People who we used to see everyday are no longer in our life as much! Family is so important that people will wait outside hospitals to see family from their hospital bed window. For Mr. Martin, an English teacher at WHS, he just wants to see his family. He said, “I have not seen my family in months, and have not hugged my mom in a year. The first thing I would do is spend more time with my family.” Most families are split up because elder people can’t be around everyone 24/7. “I want to spend time with my parents, brother, sisters and their families,” said Mrs. Niemic, a psychology teacher at WHS. Lots of people would agree for family time to be the #1 thing to do when the pandemic is over. There’s always amazing places to see, and go but with a slight travel ban we are to live and admire where we live and for most that may not be enough. Traveling would probably be the #2 things on people list on what to do after the pandemic. Social studies teacher Mr. Sand said, “I will travel anywhere! But this is the longest I've gone in the last forty years without being on a plane or leaving New England.“ Traveling definitely is a luxury and expensive for most. If you’ve got an eye for good prices and the heart to travel good for you! Gracie Leahy, a current student also said, “I'd travel the world with my friends.” Nothing better than to kick back with some friends on a tropical island. “I am taking a trip to Hawaii! I want to visit a volcano, learn more about the culture/lifestyle, and go coral reef diving. My plan is to make it happen in the summer of 2022,” says Brandon Chatfield, a science teacher. We can use this experience to reflect on how grateful we are to have been healthy for the pandemic, and we can also use this time to grieve on our loved ones who put up a good fight. In the end when the pandemic vanishes, there will be plenty to be happy about whether you spend time with family or travel. The world has endless possibilities for new experiences.  Will we see a packed cafeteria before June? This senior hopes so. by: Chris Pinchera In a year where nothing is guaranteed, I'm looking to see how students and teachers feel online school has affected the school community and how we learn. How do teachers see online schooling? Is it effective, is it more difficult and are students getting as much as they are putting in? I took these questions over to one of the most respected teachers in our school, English teacher John Martin. I wasted no time in our interview and tried to figure out what it was teachers were struggling with in this online stint. He seemed to believe that one of the main challenges he's had to face over the course of the year is connecting with his students and building a safe learning community. “It’s so easy for students to log off and get their work done, but that's only half the high school experience,” he said. I couldn't agree more with what he said because we lack that joy of joking around in the classroom and those small times talking with teachers as people. He also went on to tell me about the experiments he's had to do throughout the last year or so to see what works for students. Not everything works for all students and some stuff is just easier to other kids in an online setting. That being said, I've experienced this first hand while talking to friends and other students, some things that they may find easy I may see it as a challenge because of the layout or maybe even just because I'm at home. When asked what students struggle with the most he responded in a fairly simple and expected manner by saying managing their time and all of their work. I approached a friend and fellow student Rory Stickley and tried to find out his feelings on online schooling and he was quick to tell me he doesn't see it as being as effective as when we are in the building. I asked him his biggest struggle in his final year of high school and he replied with, “The college process has been something that I feel like a lot of people weren't ready for, including myself, and it almost feels like everything was rushed.” With decision day looming in a little less than 2 months, seniors find themselves scattering to figure what they want to do in the future while getting back to some sort of normalcy for their last 3-4 months of high school. When I asked what he felt the school community was like in this time, he didn't hesitate to say, “Tt feels like it's not even there anymore.” He elaborated on losing his football season and what that meant to his teammates and the school itself. With everything going on in a bizarre year there wasn't much that Stickley had to say beside.s “look where we are now” in a frustrated tone due to the fact that we still are yet to see much change. Finding good in a bad situation can be very difficult especially when it's gone on as long as COVID-19 has, and the question that I and many others find themselves asking is: Will things change? Are we going to get what we want and what we deserve after a long and tortuous year? With the virus numbers going down and vaccines being released we hope to see our peers and teachers walking through the halls just one last time before we move on.  by: Michael Johannes
Typically, most teachers wouldn’t have the necessary time to be able to watch YouTube with their busy lives. They mainly have to grade and create work for their students which can take up to hours depending on how much work the teachers assign to their students. When teachers do have free time, some of them may not watch YouTube because they wouldn’t find their enjoyment there. There are so many topics to watch on YouTube that teachers could watch anything, it depends on their interests of what they want to watch on YouTube. WHS social studies teacher Mr. Sand said, “I watch a lot of travel videos.” He uses YouTube for travel since he goes on a lot of vacations to places. He likes to plan out his vacations and uses YouTube in that aspect by understanding the areas he is going to. WHS Tech Ed teacher Mr. Sikora said, “I watch a variety of topics, from news, automotive and entertainment.” He uses YouTube for church as well ever since the pandemic started. Some teachers try to make their job easier to do and they do that by using videos to teach the students. There are so many videos on YouTube that some teachers could only use YouTube to teach their students on a topic. Mr. Sand said, “I use it a lot.” He uses YouTube a lot to show videos to his students because it is better to see videos about the topic that he is teaching and the topic he is teaching is better to be seen then told. Mr. Sikora said, “I use YouTube for teaching almost every class.” With what he teaches it is better for him since he can look for YouTube videos that will help him explain his lesson plan instead of taking the time to show his students what to do. There are also things that he can show on YouTube but can’t do in school, like showing what a factory looks like. YouTube is widely used across the world and many teachers use it as well. Many people watch different videos and there is nobody out there who has watched the same exact videos and if somebody watches a lot of YouTube then you can get a good grasp on what that person likes. How One NHS Member Has Overcome Pandemic Related Challenges  An assortment of Anzidei's hand sewn dog toys. By: Camila Nobre and Lorien Touponse
The Wethersfield High School National Honors Society, advised by Mrs. Niemiec, Mrs. Bellas, and Mr. Leone, has been around for quite awhile. Each year, the students are required to plan and implement community service projects. Due to the pandemic, this has been a challenging task. One student, senior Kate Anzidei, worked hard to create a project that will allow her to impact the community while staying safe. Anzidei, who has always been a kind and compassionate friend to her peers, has found a way to help her furry, four-legged friends! Her love for rescue animals inspired her to hand sew dog toys for a local animal shelter — The Connecticut Humane Society. By the end of the year, she hopes to make 30 of them. The dog toys themselves are made of fleece. Anzidei hand sews them and each one takes approximately 45 minutes, depending on the size. She has created many different shaped toys including hearts, stars, and bones. Her hope is to create unique toys that dogs of all sizes can enjoy. Anzidei plans to hand stitch pet blankets along with the chew toys. Anzidei said, “I wanted to think of a good way to give back to the community while being able to do it socially distant and I could also get other friends or family members involved if they were interested.” Anzidei has always had a love for animals and has some rescue pets herself. The newest addition to her family is a small Boston Terrier named Nemo. Anzidei told us, “This poor thing came in awful condition and I felt very bad. We ended up getting him the [medical attention] he needed, so that’s why I really wanted to support the Humane Society.” Her love of animals has influenced her to create a project to better the environment for dogs in shelters while following COVID-19 restrictions and guidelines to do so safely. Anzidei feels that there is always a clever solution to a difficult problem, and thinking outside the box allowed her to come up with this form of community service. It is often said that helping others will make you feel good. With that in mind, if we all take a page from Kate Anzidei’s book, we can make the world a better place while improving our own lives. For further information, visit the Connecticut Humane Society website: https://cthumane.org/ It may be more common than you think Source: The Fiscal Times by: Will Civitello
Teens everywhere are struggling to find employment since the start of the global pandemic. The lack of jobs has reduced the monthly income of a lot of young adults. Some families that depend on their child's income to pay a portion of the rent and without the extra money on the table, the guardian is forced to take out earnings from their savings to pay rent. Customers today like to have their kids stay away from any type of close contact. So, for job like a swim instructor, it is very hard to keep a steady pool of clients. According to the Congressional Research Service, the part time unemployment rate went up to 24.5% while the full time unemployment rate was at 12.9%. Teen workers are at a severe disadvantage in today's time. With student loan debt, car payments, and necessities, there is not enough money to give them a stable financial foundation. “Due to the lack of kids who sign up for swim lessons due to the pandemic, my financial income has been limited. I’ve had to make sacrifices across the board” (Lee, Swim Instructor). A plan that discarded teens, has been taken into place which is the distribution of the stimulus check. The amount that only gets bigger is given to people over the age of 18 and to people making a household income of less than $150,000. Although this may have covered many people, there are still a number of people in highschool who are basing their whole college experience on if they can get a grant or not. If the financial status is not met then the applicant has no choice but to go to a smaller less noticeable school instead of their dream school. With all this change such as a new lifestyle and how to interact with people coming at once, life is getting very difficult. Molding new solutions and coming up with ways to fill in the day become less and less unique. “[the loss of clients] affects my daily life because of the fact that I’m not working or being with the kids on a constant basis” (Lee, Swim Instructor). As a community we can help support local small businesses which many authorities overlook. Many times the most significant business is the one of least notice. Look for fundraisers and events to support the community.  by: Fatma Bark
I was so nervous and unhappy, but excited on my first day in WHS. I was feeling so alone as everyone seemed to know each other. This feeling stuck to me until the start of the first period. Even though I joined the school a couple of days later, I felt like everyone was ready to welcome a new student. Feeling of being welcomed is one of the most outstanding feelings that a new student is likely to experience on their first day. I met maybe more than twenty people on my first day. All of them were smiling, asking questions and ready to offer their help to me. That feeling was like finding a new place to belong. My thoughts about being an outsider were able to stay with me until my first ELL class. This class proved to me that WHS was full of students from all around the world and from many different backgrounds. I just met a couple of them, yet there were many others to discover. I believe I have enough experience to make a statement about a school’s society as I have seen four high schools in total. This is what makes me different from many other students probably, but it is the same thing that makes WHS a society full of unique people. I want to include a glimpse of my story to this article. I was a freshman at my dream high school in Turkey in 2016 until the day came and my dad told us he was fired unjustly from the bank that he worked for 16 years. He wasn’t as sorry as we all were. He always wanted to work abroad and this gave him a space to find what he was hoping. He found a job in an international company and moved to a country that I would never imagine: India. There was an education difference between Turkey and India. This led me to stay in Turkey one more year. Away from my parents. To complete my sophomore year, I moved to my grandparent’s house. The time I spent in Turkey was challenging but I was able to leave Turkey, but there was something bigger needed to worry about. My life in India. This journey was relatively harder. The need of learning a new language while taking classes in that language was very stressful. In addition to the language barrier, there was a cultural, climate and society change.  By: David Barajas
This year has been different then most years due to the ongoing pandemic and all of the other crazy things that have occurred. Some of us are trying to get jobs this year as for some it may be their last year here. I decided to figure out how it was working during the pandemic. Jobs these days are really important due to the shutdown. Employment is more important than ever to help struggling families as well as learning important life and employment skills. I decided to go and find out how working during the pandemic was like, I interviewed Aaron Maher, a senior at Wethersfield High School, to find out how it was to work at a pizza restaurant in Coventry during this unprecedented time. I decided to ask him what were some differences he noticed at work between last year and this year, He said “Less people are coming in. More deliveries and people want touchless contact for delivery”. He also said, “We don’t dine in anymore but delivery has been out the door. People are increasingly takeout.” This isn't surprising to as people want to do as much as they can to avoid getting COVID. However, not all is lost, as places like restaurants, grocery stores, and other employers are still looking to hire high schoolers. And while so much has changed in the past year, we can make it through together! |
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