T h e

C r i m s o n s u nThe Student Newspaper of Morristown-Beard SchoolVol. 16, No. 3 February 201570 Whippany Road, Morristown, NJ 07960

Morristown-Beard plans to upgrade the math and sci-ence facilities and the prepa-rations are under way, said Peter Caldwell, Headmaster. Major improvements in these areas were recommended by the NJAIS visiting team for accreditation in their report, which will officially come out in February. “The visiting team recog-nized, as we have, that the math and science classrooms are not in keeping with the rest of the campus,” said Mr. Caldwell. MBS has been pre-paring for the renovation of the math and science buildings for about a year, he said. However, the school will need to raise a substantial amount of financial support from the MBS community for the renovation. Mr. Caldwell declined to specify the amount at this time. To get a sense of support for the project, Mr. Caldwell con-ducted a feasibility study, which asked the community whether they supported the concept of improving the math and sci-ence facilities. The feasibil-

ity survey was directed at the board of trustees, MBS alumni, current parents and others who have been financially support-ive in the past. ”They overwhelmingly agreed to bring the math and science facilities to the level of the rest of the campus,” Mr. Caldwell said. The scope of the project will be determined by the amount of money the school raises. So far, basic footprint plans have been laid out, Mr. Caldwell has visited other schools to see their facilities, and he has been in communication with archi-tects. “We’re moving quite aggres-sively,” he said, but pointed out that this process will still take a long time. The plan has changed and evolved many times, but each day more prog-ress is made, he said. In addition to the upgrade recommendations, the accredi-tation team’s report gave the school numerous commenda-tions, including having a “posi-tive and happy community” and an “infectious feeling of

well-being that is reflected by everyone on campus.” Since the team has not evaluated the MBS campus since 2004, they lauded MBS’s “decade of growth,” which con-sisted of transformations, both academically and physically to

campus. In terms of curricu-lum, they praised the integra-tion of Humanities and iPads to the curriculum, as well as additions and renovations to campus, such as Founders Hall, Wilkie Hall and Athletic Center upgrades.

In five years, the Accreditation team will return to check on the school’s progress in imple-menting the recommendations, followed by another visit, ten years from now, to evaluate the progress MBS has made.

Upgrade coming for Math and ScienceBy Maddie Braunstein

Writers’ retreat-- into the woods By Molly Glick and MeGhan nelliGan

Fourteen students sat in the dark cabin, their faces illumi-nated by the lantern, mesmer-ized by the power of language. Students agreed this moment, in which they shared their fa-vorite passages of literature, was the most powerful of the first annual MBS writers’ re-treat at Camp Mason. “I am the happiest English teacher on the planet,” said Darren Lovelock, English department chair, organizer of the event and provider of tea and “elevenses.” Mr. Lovelock was constantly on standby to serve students refreshments as well as marvel at the writing process taking place. Allison Postma, Owen Boynton and Jennifer War-ner were among other English teachers who not only guided

students out of writer’s block, but also served them macaroni dinner. Other teachers who turned up to provide help with food or inspiration included Kate Sheleg, Mike Kelly, Brian Crowe, Ida Picker, and Nicholas Jackson. Everyone was able to see each other in a different light. “I like seeing teachers outside of school because they were really relaxed and it was a comfortable environment,” Amanda Sit, a junior, said. The awkwardness at the beginning of the trip quick-ly vanished as the group played several writing games, encour-aging creativity and openness. The days were filled with a good amount of quietness, continued on Page 6

Photo: Amanda SitStudents take a walk through the woods at the Writers’ Retreat

inside this issue

Profiles:James

Callahan and Liza

MacCowatt

Anything Goes

Author Bryan

Burrough Visits MBS

Page 7Page 4

Page 5

Photo: Jared RosenJames Mullane ‘18 climbs the staircase to a class inside the math building.

C r i m s o n s u n February 2015

OPINION/EDITORIAL Page 2

the criMson sun70 Whippany road

MorristoWn, neW jersey 07960973-539-3032

Op-Ed Editor Molly GlickStaff Photographers James Fort Chelsea Kramer Jared Rosen Amanda Sit Allie GoldbergFaculty Adviser Ida Picker

Thanks to: Bruce Adams, Peter Caldwell, Darren Burns, Darren Lovelock, Barbara Napholtz, Chris Finn, Caitlin Trought, Steve Patchett, John Mascaro and Ezra Gottlieb.

We welcome letters to the editor, opinion pieces, sto-ries, cartoons and photographs.To contact the paper regard-ing submissions, send an e-mail to either ebruno@mbs.net or wmallen@mbs.net. The Crimson Sun corrects its factual errors and ac-cepts corrections.

The Crimson Sun is a 4-16 page newspaper, available in print and online through the mbs.net website. It is written primarily for the approximately 544 students attending MBS and the approximately 100 faculty and staff members, and is distributed free of charge to all members of the school commu-nity. The Crimson Sun provides information and entertain-ment in addition to various viewpoints on debatable issues. We will not print anything that is deemed libelous, obscene or in poor taste. We reserve the right to edit or withhold anything submitted and correct spelling, grammar and punctuation when necessary.

Editors-in-Chief Emily Bruno William MallenManaging Editors Brian Andrzejewski Bailey Rechler Ben Schreiber Alexa Rojek (photos)News Editors Madalyn Braunstein Carlye CordingFeature Editor Meghan Nelligan

Dress code issue:

Making the case for sneakers By Ben schreiBer

Cartoon: Conner Cairoli

Sneakers look nice and tidy compared to clunky Timberland boots with laces undone.

Most MBS students are pleased to hear that plans are getting worked out to upgrade the underground science labs and rickety math building. Students are excited about a future with better heating and a more up-to-date learning environment, not to mention seeing the last of the science department trailer, which has been used on campus – tempo-rarily— for over ten years. The math and science buildings are known for ex-treme variations in tempera-ture-- being either extremely hot or extremely cold, annoying experiences that few will miss. Even though some students love the charm of the old math building, we can adjust to say-ing goodbye to the cramped, old classrooms.

Still, despite the need for renovation, a number of

school traditions and jokes are connected to these buildings, like the door to the science trailer being infamous as the

hardest to open on campus, even tougher than the stubborn door to the second floor of Grant Hall. The walls of the math buildings are covered in news articles, pictures, and projects. In the middle of the science hallway, there are science jokes on the walls that students often stop and laugh at. In short, we are look-ing forward to the new and im-proved buildings that will get built eventually. And yet, with the renovations and changes, some of Morristown-Beard’s history will be lost. Much more important, though, is the new energy that the upgraded fa-cilities will generate among stu-dents and faculty.

Editorial:Math building and science labs:

Upgrades, at last

At first glance, it would ap-pear to a visitor at MBS that most of the boys work in a lumberyard. Students thump-ing around in cumbersome and oversized work boots, not to mention the sloppy trend of hanging the “tongue” over the laces, sends a muddled mes-sage of proper footwear in the dress code. How can Timberland boots be more presentable than sneakers? While the administra-tion wants students to look pre-sentable and well dressed, their case against sneakers is out-of-date, contradictory, and unsafe. As a lifer, I have experienced changes both in the Middle School and Upper-School dress codes. While the administra-tion has gradually relaxed their

stringency on girls’ dress code, rules on dress shoes for boys have not budged. At Newark Academy, Pingry, and Gill St. Bernard’s, the dress code is casual, though students are not allowed to

wear jeans, sweatshirts, or brand logos. However, students

are allowed to wear sneakers. This grants students the com-fort and protection that sneak-ers provide while upholding a neat and presentable appear-ance. As we encounter the frigid and icy winter conditions, dress shoes are unsafe and place the stu-dents in peril every time they saunter outside. Sperry’s, one of the most popular dress-code shoes for both genders, have a very slippery bottom and pro-vide little ankle support, pre-cipitating falls and injuries. Why is the adminis-tration putting our students at

risk? Sneakers provide traction in even the most brutal condi-tions and provide the comfort and ankle support that is im-perative to maintaining safety when walking. A fair solution to this issue would be to allow stu-dents to wear sneakers in the winter. These few months could serve as a trial for both stu-dents and the administration. As the winter months come to a close, the administration could then decide whether sneakers are worth permanently imple-menting into the dress code.

. . . seeing “the last of the science department

trailer”

“How can Timber-land boots be more presentable than

sneakers?”

C r i m s o n s u n February 2015

OPINION/EDITORIAL Page 3

As an MBS senior who has endured three years of a rigor-ous high school curriculum, the college application process was something I had hoped to find rewarding. However, as colleges look for an easy way to distinguish a student’s aca-demic potential, unfortunately, they often turn to standardized test scores. Standardized tests, like the SAT and ACT, do an unbelievable job at telling a college how well a student can perform on a four-hour test on a random Saturday morning. However, these tests do not gauge a student’s potential to learn, communicate and dis-cuss topics with other students, or real world intelligence. I tend to view myself as a decent student with A’s and B’s, whose primary attribute is working hard. But after receiv-ing my SAT scores, I was left with a depressing feeling that my past four years of hard work have not paid off and that get-ting into college was going to be a stretch. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that these tests do not identify who I am as student and what I am able to accomplish in and out of the classroom setting. Standardized tests measure how well an individual takes a timed test that focuses on read-

ing comprehension, math skills, and how fast they can write an essay, not their ability to think critically. Most high schools do not focus on the necessary skills that are essential to taking a test, never mind a standardized

test. This means that students must learn these skills on their own. Some students’ par-ents pay for an outside tutor to try and prepare them for the

test, which gives those who can-not afford outside tutoring an unfair disadvantage from the start. And some high achieving students are just bad test tak-ers. Why should students

be tested on how well they can take a test when there is no even playing field? Additionally, these tests do not accurately measure a student’s potential to learn or

what they can accomplish in the classroom. Some students who learn differently or take longer to complete tasks are given “ex-tra time,” with approval, to take the test. On top of not having

an even playing field, the tests don’t measure other important qualities, like a student’s ability to work with and communicate with others. They do not pro-vide students with the opportu-

nity to illustrate their qualities outside of taking a timed test. Because some colleges have already begun to under-stand the uselessness of stan-dardized tests, about 850 and increasing colleges in the Unit-ed States are test optional. This gives the student the option on a college’s application to choose not to send their test scores. If colleges are looking for an alternative, they could make college interviews man-datory, rather than optional, which would provide a chance to meet their applicant and get to know them on a personal lev-el. As a result of a begin-ning trend away from these tests, colleges will rely more heavily on students’ grade point average (GPA), which they should, and what the applica-tion and recommendations say about the individual as a whole. Because my standard-ized test scores were not as ap-pealing as I would have hoped, I did not send them to the test optional schools where I am ap-plying. I know that they will rely more heavily on my GPA and the classes I take, while also valuing my many extra circular activities, such as peer group, blood drive, sports, clubs, and other community service projects that I am involved in.

Standardized tests: useless and unfair By ryan palazetti

Before I sat down and wrote this piece about the Ferguson and Eric Garner protests throughout the country, I had to think about the reactions I would receive as a black student writing about racial events at a predominately white school. I knew there would be many people who would not agree with my opinions and I am okay with that. However, rather than avoiding these situations, we need to be discuss-ing them in our community to break the barrier that stops people from speaking about racial issues. Discussing issues will result in better understanding and may help the never ending cycle of disap-pointment, despair and denouncement. In the most recent case, Eric Garner was selling loose cigarettes on the street in Staten Island when five police officers confronted him for over twenty minutes. The situation escalated when Officer Pantaleo used an illegal choke-hold, banned in New York since 1993, on Garner to detain him. After shouting, “I can’t breathe,” eleven times, Garner, who had asthma, was dead. In this case, Pantaleo was not indicted. Thousands of New Yorkers demonstrated against this decision for days afterwards, along with thousands of people around the country. Now I will address the Mi-chael Brown case in detail. On August

9, 2014, Michael Brown, an unarmed black young man, was shot and killed by Darren Wilson, a white Ferguson police officer. There are different ac-counts of what happened that day. Ini-tially, Brown was caught on camera at the Ferguson Market and Liquor store taking cigarillos. The police were called and given a description of the man and Officer Wilson responded. Words were exchanged between Brown, his friend and Officer Wilson. Wilson backed his car up heading towards the young men. When he stopped, there was a confronta-tion between Brown and Wilson. Report-edly, Brown punched Wilson through the police car window and was shot in the thumb. Brown then ran away from the car and Wilson got out. When Brown was about 153 feet away, he turned around with his hands up and reportedly said, “Don’t Shoot.” Wilson fired twelve shots. At least six shots hit Brown including a shot to the head, which killed him. The shooting created an uproar in communities all over the country, es-pecially in black communities where deadly confrontations are common. Many peaceful protests were held to ex-press the outrage people felt about the shooting, where protestors raised their arms chanting “DON’T SHOOT.” On November 24, 2014, over three months

after the shooting, the grand jury decid-ed not to indict Officer Wilson in connec-tion with the shooting of Michael Brown. The jury’s task was to determine wheth-er there was probable cause to see that Officer Wilson should be charged with a crime. The decision to not indict Wilson caused a bigger uproar. I am against the grand jury’s decision to not indict Officer Wilson. I am also not pleased with how the case was handled. During the incident, the tactics officer Wilson used were not right. In-stead of trying to reduce the hostility, he escalated it by using a firearm. He could have used his baton or even a taser. During the three month long grand jury hearing, prosecutor Robert P. McCulloch, did not rec-ommend a charge against officer Wilson, which a prosecutor usually provides. In addi-tion, only a few people are supposed to be used as witnesses, but, over 60 peo-ple were called to testify for the grand jury. A defendant testimony is not usu-ally heard but Officer Wilson testified for four hours. Finally, McCulloch gave all evidence and testimonies to the public on television, for 20 minutes after the de-cision not to indict Officer Wilson, which is not common. These decisions not to in-dict or charge with a crime contributed to the racial tension, not only in Fergu-

son but all over the country. People who agree with the de-cision of not indicting Officer Wilson believe that he was in the right to shoot Michael Brown. They would say he was fearful for his life because Brown was coming towards him. They argue he shot Brown in self defense because Brown seemed to be a threat, especially following the physical confrontation at Officer Wilson’s vehicle. These two upsetting incidents reflect mistrust and a lack of commu-nication between the black community and the police. Although the tension will not fade away overnight, there are ways to prevent these situa-tions. First, the community and the police depart-ment need to develop more trust and a healthy working relationship to lower the tension. For the police department, there needs to be better training for de-escalating hostile situations. Moreover, more police officers need to have body cameras to protect themselves and help determine the truth when situations like these occur. As for the people, rather than reacting to the police officers in a hostile manner, they should be polite and do as the authority says.

Breaking barriers between the black community and policeBy doMinique sMith

Cartoon: William MallenA student can juggle many activities, yet taking the SAT can be their kryptonite.

You open the door into the din-ing hall for lunch, and a storm of food fragrances fill your nose. You’re starving and are won-dering what to eat. You’re not in the mood for the special en-tree, soup, or salad. Then you recognized a familiar face from breakfast, the Muffin Man. You walk closer and realize that the mysterious man from break-fast, is now in his Sandwich Guy disguise. Behind those known identities is Emerson Arenas--Muffin Man by Break-fast, Sandwich Guy by lunch. Mr. Arenas has worked with the company Flik and MBS for about five years. He is of Peruvian, South American nationality. He grew up in New York and now resides in New Jersey. Outside of MBS, he is a chef and works at house parties and caters for another catering company. Emerson is not only a sandwich maker. He is a sand-wich eater as well. His favorite sandwich is a hoagie, made with ham, salami, provolone,

lettuce and tomato on an Ital-ian roll. Besides being the Muf-fin Man and the Sandwich Guy, Mr. Arenas is in charge of other tasks that are vital for not just cafeteria food, but a culinary ex-perience. Mr. Arenas manages the juice machine and frozen yogurt machine. During break-fast, he helps Ms. Margaret by selling the pastries as she mans the grill. At lunch, he not only makes the sandwiches, but also prepares the ingredients. “I cut the meat,” he explains. “All the cold cuts, the cheeses, the salads; chicken , tuna, and the egg salad, the let-tuce and tomato.” Emerson has personal relationships with the students and faculty that he serves and often remembers their sand-wiches. “He’s quick, nice, and knows my order and me,” said senior Dylan Iuzzolino. When Emerson gives a little extra meat on a sandwich,

it doesn’t go unnoticed. “He put extra salami in my sandwich. I really appreci-ated it,” said junior Steven Kar-bachinskiy. Since he has worked at MBS for five years, Mr. Arenas is one of the most recognizable figures from the Flik Dining hall staff, known not only by his given name, “the Sandwich Guy”, but by the catchphrase he uses while preparing sand-wiches. “He always says “next”

when he’s halfway through making a sandwich,” said ju-nior Annabel Pruitt. Students understand that Mr. Arenas is more than just a sandwich guy and cares for not only the sandwiches be-ing made, but for the students as well. He makes his sandwiches fast with accuracy and dedica-tion. He has relationships with the students and faculty far beyond just a delicatessen and a customer. The students relish his sandwich making skills.

“He has a deep culinary passion that extends to more than just making kid’s sandwiches,” said sophomore Harrison Kern. The feelings between Emerson and our community are mutual. “I enjoy everything from the moment I come in to the moment I leave,” he said. “Besides the food, I enjoy the school, the students, and the teachers,” Emerson said. “I en-joy everything!”

C r i m s o n s u n February 2015

FEATURES Page 4

Do you know the sandwich man?By arielle Moss

Photo: Amanda SitEmerson Arenas, known by his nickname “The Muffin Man” or “The Sandwich Guy,” prepares a sandwich dur-ing Middle School Lunch.

Author Bryan Burrough reveals new book Days of RageBy Brett rudnitsky

On a chilly December af-ternoon, the boisterous Period 4 Journalism class quickly qui-eted down as Bryan Burrough sauntered into the room wear-ing a baby blue sweater over a tie-less white shirt. He sat down, and took a long sip of coffee. Then he ran his hands down his beard, and spoke. One could hear his soft Texas accent, picked up after spending much of his early childhood there. Burrough has written three books that have reached the New York Times Top Ten Best Seller List: The Big Rich, Barbarians at the Gate, and Public Enemies, which was adapted into a movie starring Johnny Depp and Christian Bale. He was eager to dis-cuss his upcoming book, Days of Rage, that recounts the actions of gangs that planted bombs across the United States for six years in the 1970s. Interviews for this story were difficult to get, Burroughs said, since most of the people involved had ei-ther actually created bombs and were not willing to talk, or killed innocent bystanders and even policemen. Also, as in Public Enemies, Burrough had to pore through thousands of FBI files. All told, the research took him five years. “It was hard,” he said.

Ever since he took journalism back in the 9th grade, Burrough knew report-ing would be what he wanted to pursue as a career. He attend-ed the University of Missouri, where he was offered a job right out of college due to his work ethic and reporting skills.

“It was not even close. I wanted it more, and worked harder than anybody else,” he said. Compared to his peers who wrote two or three articles a week, Burrough would write

ten or twelve. He was offered a job by three different media outlets, and ended up choosing the one that he knew the least about: The Wall Street Jour-nal. Although he was almost fired on a few occasions, Bur-rough persevered and worked there for seven years. Then,

when he was just 27 years old, he took a leave of absence for 8 months to write Barbarians at the Gate, co-reported with John Heylar. Unexpectedly, that book stayed on the New York Times Best Seller List for 39 straight

weeks, and was even #1 for a week. “It was the first busi-ness book that went viral into the cultural mainstream,” he said, explaining that Barbar-ians is comprehensible by even someone with little to no knowl-edge about Wall Street.

However, his next work, Vendetta, ended up at the complete opposite end of the spectrum. In fact, only about 17 people read the book, Burrough said, half-jokingly. “It was complicated

and too long,” he explained. After his job at the Journal, Burrough decided to change his focus of writing to more general interest and be-gan as a contributor at Vanity Fair, where he has been free-lancing for 24 years. Following the disappointment with Ven-detta, he decided to stop writing Wall Street related books. “My heart wasn’t in it, and I was just doing it for the money,” he said. Burrough now writes for Vanity Fair three times a year, which enables him to con-tinue to write his books. Despite the disappoint-ment, Burrough was able to bounce back and come out with another successful book, Public Enemies, about the crime wave that took America by storm in the 1930s. His inspiration came from his grandfather, who used to tell him stories all the time about the famous outlaws Bon-nie and Clyde. The research was extensive, as he had to read thousands of FBI files and casework, buying them for 10 cents a paper. Although he spent almost a year’s salary, it was worth it. “Public Enemies was the most fun I ever had in my life. I started doing things be-cause I wanted to, not because I got paid well,” he said.

Photo: Alexa RojekBest-selling author Bryan Burrough (Barbarians at the Gate, Public Enemies) regales Journalism students with tales about his writing ups and downs and the importance of writing as a life skill.

C r i m s o n s u n February 2015

FEATURES Page 5

In the midst of finishing his novel, The Barbarian Nurseries, Hector Tobar received a call from his agent; they had been granted the right to produce a story on the thirty-three Chilean miners who had survived sixty-nine days underground. Tobar jumped at the op-portunity. Within a couple of weeks, he was on a plane to Chile. In an attempt to understand what truly hap-pened in the San Jose Mine, Tobar interviewed the sur-vivors within four or five months of the rescue. In addi-tion, he explored an underground mine himself to get a sense of the environment. Similar to the miners in the story, Tobar risked his life to perform his job realizing, as the Chilean miners experienced, there is always the danger of a mine collapsing. After his investigation, Tobar developed a brilliant piece of long form journalism titled “Sixty-Nine Days” that was featured in the July 7, 2014 issue of The New Yorker magazine. As a result of this piece’s major suc-cess, Tobar expanded the story from a nineteen page magazine article to a 320- page book: Deep Down Dark. Rather than constructing a provocative composition with a focused argument, Tobar writes about the odys-sey of the thirty-three men trapped below, resulting in

a compelling story with impressive ideas and perspec-tives. One of the more enthralling themes he addresses is faith. According to Tobar, faith was the miracle that set the Chilean miners free. Throughout the work, he highlights specific examples when the miners reached out to a greater power hoping for survival. The men came to believe that the mine was a coffin or a church; they prayed in the search for redemption. During one situation, when the rescuers stopped drilling the hole in the mine for a moment, a miner’s faith collapsed. He worried that the rescuers had given up or believed that the thirty-three men had died. “The silence just destroyed us,” he said. “Because you would feel abandoned, alone. Without a positive sign, your faith collapses. Because faith isn’t totally blind.” Another time, one of the miners “realizes that the im-probable fact of their survival also carries a hint of the divine. To be alive in this hole, against all odds, speaks to Omar of the existence of a higher power with some sort of plan for these still-living men,” Tobar wrote. In addition to exploring this compelling idea, Tobar

tells the story from a captivating perspective. At one point, I was chilled reading the work. By narrating the story from the point of view of the miners, the author makes the reader feel as if he or she is part of the group trapped underground. Tobar thus creates a story that is hard to put down. The reader needs to find out what happens.

Deep Down Dark: 33 Chilean miners trapped

Rehearsals for the production of Cole Porter’s Anything Goes at Founders Hall are underway. The musical is a farce and any-one who loves to laugh will en-joy it said Susan Speidel, direc-tor and chair of the performing arts department. “The show consists of a group of colorful characters on a transatlantic crossing from New York to London,” said Ms. Speidel. Set in the 1930’s, the play centers around the sea journey taken together by odd-ball characters, such as a gang-ster, an English lord, Chinese converts, and a crazy minister. To capture the essence of a luxury liner sailing across the Atlantic, all the scenes ex-cept the first will take place on a giant boat. “The boat has two lev-

els, a top and lower deck, and staircases come down on each side,” she continued. “Some pieces of the set move to create interior cabins from the decks. I won’t get into the details though because that is the mystery of theatre.” Apart from the set, costumes for the production will include tuxedos, glitter se-quences, and colorful, bright patterns. There will also be lots of sailors and even a purser. “What makes this mu-sical unique is it is a big dance show,” Ms. Speidel went on. “There are comedy numbers, two love duets, and even a 12-minute long tap dance.” Some cast members include seniors Emily Hromin as Reno Sweeney, Tyler Smith as Billy Crocker, Tiernan Mul-

lane as Lord Evelyn Oakleigh, JD Parker as Eliijah J. Whit-ney, Annabel Pruitt as Erma, Alexa Rojek as Hope Harcourt and James Cocuzza as Moon-face Martin.

“There is a really strong group of singers and performers,” said Ms. Speidel. “They will surprise everyone who comes and sees the show.” The show opens at Founders

Hall on Wednesday, Feb. 25 at 3:30 pm, and Friday through Sunday, Feb. 27, 28 and 29, at 7:30 pm.

Anything Goes goes nutsBy WilliaM Mallen

Play Preview:

Book Review:

By teddy hatfield

Photo: Google ImagesTwo Chilean Miners embrace after their dramatic rescue.

Photo: Alexa Rojek and Carina SteficekStudents rehearse their scenes, preparing for their performances on Wednesday, Feb. 25 at 3:30 pm, and Friday through Sunday, Feb. 27, 28 and 29, at 7:30 pm.

C r i m s o n s u n February 2015

NEWS/BRIEFS Page 6

chatter and nature. Groups gathered for walks, spending time on paths or throwing rocks on the frozen lake. Often hours passed in silence, broken only by the tapping of keyboards and flipping of pages. As the stu-dents worked, they sat around the crackling fire, opting to work without the cabin lights. “I liked the quiet, in-between moments,” said Mr. Boynton, “early in the morn-ing or late at night, when sleep

lurked without imposing, and when people sat strewn by the fire on the floor and couches, sometimes scribbling, some-times reading other people’s writing, sometimes comment-ing, sometimes debating, some-times reading aloud, and some-times saying whatever came to mind, about writing or about the day or something else en-tirely. “Guards were dropped, peo-ple seemed themselves, on an

even footing as people among people,” he said. Students attending included Ian Winslow ‘16, JD Parker ‘15, Carina Steficek ‘15, Alexa Ro-jek ‘15, Amanda Sit ‘16, Jessica Babb ‘16, Molly Glick ‘16, Hai-ley Winterbottom ‘16, Meghan Nelligan ‘16, Dominique Diggs ‘17, Annabel Pruitt ‘16, Kayla Renee Terry ‘15, Marc Kamil ‘15 and Aidan Wood ‘17.

Writers’ retreat (continued from page 1)

Six MBS middle schoolers, Lily Yee, Anika Buch, Oliver Simon, Quiya Harris, Lucas Swanson, and Alex Keri, trav-eled to Delbarton on December 10 and came back as Spelling Bee winners. Yee, Buch, and Harris made the varsity team, where the competition words were harder but they still had a blast. Quiya Harris, placed first in varsity and won the var-sity team award, with the word “hydroponics.” Harris said she had a wonderful experience, met new people and encourages other students to take part in this competition. “If all else fails, guess,” she advises potential contes-tants.

Alex Keri, on the JV team, Alex placed second. Before joining, he said he was a good speller but improved. “I was flattered when I won,” said Keri. “If you don’t know a word, sound it out, and be confident,” he said. “Remember to relax,” he add-ed, and take breaths, and tell yourself, “It’s going to be fine.” “I was impressed at how quickly they refocused their energy on people who were on the stage,” instead of being up-set for getting out, said Karin Anderson, Spelling Bee adviser and Middle School teacher.

Middle school spelling bee triumphBy riya patel

Toy Drive gifts overflow commons

Photo: Amanda SitSenior Kayla Terry and Junior Jessica Babb share their writing and opinions at the Writers’ Retreat.

An overwhelming mass of toys flooded the Middle School commons, ranging from snow-boards and bikes to stuffed ani-mals and board games, totaling 802 gifts donated from the MBS community for this year’s an-nual Toy Drive. “Knowing that we can tap into the potential of this com-munity and to be able to help so many people at a time inspires me,” said Cynthia Hamilton, middle school art teacher, who has been running the Toy Drive for the past eight years. The Morris County Park

Police distributed the toys to local hospitals, battered wom-en’s shelters, the New Jersey Department of Children and Families, and any other needy families that approach them, Ms. Hamilton said. With these donations, students, faculty and staff brightened the Christmas-es of families across the state. “It makes me proud to be a part of this community when we are represented in such a positive way,” through the quantity as well as the quality of the donations, said Ms. Ham-ilton.

By terri Green

Photo: Steve PatchettSenior Alexa Rojek reads her Mandarin book to a packed classroom.

In prekindergarten and first grade, Alexa Ro-jek lived in Singapore where she learned Man-darin. She was proud of herself for remembering some words she learned in her childhood, like “hello,” “cat” and “dog.” After taking Spanish for three years, she wanted a change. She realized she could take an independent study in Manda-rin with Zoe Jameson, an Upper School history reacher. Rojek loved the idea studying one to one because, she said, “It’s best environment for [her] to learn a language is in a small setting.” For her final project, Alexa and Ms. Jameson

decided to create a children’s book about a child’s fifth birthday party to incorporate all the topics they studied about: hobbies, numbers, dates, gifts, and greetings. After researching other chil-dren’s books, they developed the main message, which was say thank you. Rojek also watched the Mandarin program Ni Hao Kai-lan to help. Besides learning a new language, Rojek plays the cello, literally flew across Founders Hall stage as Peter in the musical Peter Pan, and is managing editor for photos of the Crimson Sun.

Rojek writes Mandarin children’s book By riya patel

Photo: Steve PatchettSpelling champs relish their victory: from left: Anika Buch, Quiya Harris, Lily Yee, Alex Keri, Oliver Simon, and Lucas Swanson.

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After winning their first ever conference title last season, the girls’ varsity basketball team had one of their most successful years, making it to the quar-ter finals of the county tourna-ment and ending with a win-ning record of 19-8. Heading into the 2014-2015 season, the team aims to repeat that suc-cessful season, with senior cap-tains Morgan Bartner, Katie Hunt and Lizzie Hunt leading the way behind Coaches Mike Sturgeon and Brian Martin. To date, the Crimson have posted a record of 13-7 and are work-ing hard to keep getting results. With the state start date moved forward this year, many New Jersey teams have been working since before the Thanksgiving holiday to pre-pare for the season. Although the Crimson have prepared in the same way, there is a lot of talent in the area that they will have to face. In graduating last year’s captain Kathryn Breg-na, the Crimson lose a strong rebounding presence on the court this year. Also, junior Meg Damstrom will not return after suffering an unfortunate ACL injury during the fall soccer sea-son. The absence of Damstrom, one of the Crimson’s most ver-satile players, will have the most impact on the squad. “You just can’t replace Meg’s athleticism,” Coach Stur-geon said. Despite this key loss, the team has high hopes. “We want to stay un-defeated in the conference this season and win back to back titles,” Bartner said. Coach Sturgeon is planning to play a new style this season, complementing the individual strengths of each of the girls he has on the court. “In the past we have

played a fast-paced run game,” Coach Sturgeon said. “This year, we have to slow the ball down a little more.” Responsible for imposing the strategy on the court this season is captain Morgan Bart-ner, a senior. Standing at 6’2”, Bartner has been major con-tributor to the Crimson’s past success and is a fierce opponent in all aspects of the court. While her size and speed enhance her defensive game, her physicality near the rim and her lights out three-point shot make her an all around offensive threat as well. After becoming only the seventh player in school history to score over 1000 ca-reer points in January, Bart-ner has caught the attention of coaches and teams from all over the state. She intends to make a continuing impact with the help of her teammates and hopes to lead the team to another confer-ence title. A key victory the Crim-son needs to fulfill this goal is to take down local rival Hanover Park. “We know that they are one of the better teams in the conference,” Bartner said. “Since a lot of our team comes from Florham Park, it’s always an exciting game.” “We are also are look-ing forward to facing Morris Catholic and Chatham this sea-son, two consistently tough op-ponents,” captain Katie Hunt, a senior, said. Aside from Bartner, and both Katie and Lizzie Hunt, other returners for the Crimson include Serena Morales, Zaire Alston and Jenna Racaniello. In addition, the Crimson gain key freshmen Katie Mackin and Paige Williams this winter, who look to contribute at both ends of the court.

Looking to stay on top By kristy cotter

Girls’ Basketball:

Mind over matter best de-scribes Elizabeth “Liza” Mac-Cowatt in the water. No mat-ter how much her arms and legs ache, she keeps fighting through it. As soon as Elizabeth “Liza” MacCowatt hits the wa-ter, the first thing she thinks about is winning the race. Still, she never underestimates her opponents. MacCowatt takes every swimmer seriously. No matter how easy the race might be, she gives it her all. For eleven years, Liza MacCowatt has been swimming competitively. It all began with her mother who swam for the Summit YMCA Seals. When Liza turned six, her mother took her out for the swim team.

She made it. She still swims with the same girls she swam with when she first made the team. Being with them made swimming special for her. The first year Mac-Cowatt joined the Summit swim team, she was not the best swimmer in her age group. The next year, once her coaches taught her techniques that she practiced, she started to get the hang of it. “Everyone who swims needs to work hard to do well or succeed,” she said. When she practices, she is normally in the pool for every day for about two hours or more. She does dry land, strength training for a few hours a week as well. Most weekends, the

team competes in two-day meets. Additionally, MacCow-att tries to get enough sleep, calories and carbs while eating healthy food. MacCowatt swims for the MBS swim team in addition to the YMCA Seals. The night before a meet, she gets a full eight hours of sleep, loads herself with pas-ta and keeps hydrated. Right before a race, she gets a little nervous, so she tries to stay calm. Right before she jumps in the pool, she thinks about each part of the race: getting a fast start off the blocks, not taking too many breaths, and pushing hard off the wall on turns.

Mini-Profile: MacCowatt: serious swimmingBy doMinique sMith

Photo: Allie GoldbergSenior Liza MacCowatt takes a breath as she prepares to dive back into water.

Off the ice, it’s easy to see that James Callahan can get silly, often joking with his friends and fooling around in class. But when he gets on the ice, he transforms into a different person, totally focused-- skating the puck down the ice, zipping past the opposing team’s play-ers, setting up an offensive play and making it look effortless. His understanding for the game comes from his grand-father who played in the hockey 1968 Olympics in Grenoble, Switzerland and taught Cal-lahan how to skate, starting at age three. Since childhood he has played for various skilled travel organizations, develop-ing his shooting, skating, puck handling, and defensive skills. At an MBS hockey game, he

contributes to the team as an offensive defense, rushing the puck up the ice to set up the play for the offense. “I love the competitive atmosphere surrounding the sport,” Callahan said. “Nothing can beat it.” He looks forward to this atmosphere on a grander scale in college. When his senior year comes to a close, he will be spending a gap year playing ju-nior hockey in a league for play-ers aging from 16 to 20 years old, then taking his talents to Quinnipiac University in Ham-den, Connecticut. Last year, the 2013-2014 season, the Men’s Quinnipiac Hockey team fin-ished in the top ten D1 college teams. The most difficult as-

pect of hockey is the commit-ment. Even though Callahan is so passionate for the game, playing for two teams is a lot of hockey. There comes a point, he says, where hockey becomes not only physically tiring but also mentally exhausting. “”Missing out on social events here and there for hock-ey does get old,” he said. Regarding his secrets to success, James couldn’t help but bring in his sense of humor. “I work hard in the gym and on the ice and it pays off,” he said. “But don’t over do it,” he added. “Reward your self for hard work. It’s always good to hang out with friends on off days and have fun too.”

Mini-Profile:

James Callahan: transformed on iceBy ryan palazetti

Photo: Marci RacanielloSenior Morgan Bartner fights for the ball at Dover High School. MBS won 47-11.

Coming off an outstanding 2013-14 season, the Girls’ ice hockey team captured its fifth straight League Champion-ship with a record of 14 wins/4 losses/1tie. This does not come as a surprise. The varsity girls are building a dynasty that will go down as one of the best stretches of dominance in New Jersey High School Girls Hock-ey history. This year, the girls look to continue their success and make it a six-peat. “Everyone is trying to knock us off,” said Coach Bruce Driver. “As usual, the main goal is to win the league champion-ship, and I think we can,” he added. Despite losing six se-niors to graduation, three of whom were starters and key players, Coach Driver has all the confidence in the world when it comes to this years se-niors, Kendall Cornine, Christi-na D’Alessandro, and Kathleen

McNamara. “Cornine is one of if not the best in the state,” Coach Driver said. McNamara has even changed positions, going from forward last year, back to her natural position of defense. She and D’Alessandro combine to form a defense that causes nightmares for their opponents. The girls have been able to overcome the loss of last year’s seniors: Carolyn Cham-bers, Kelly Dolan, Mikhaela Schultz, Ashley Magner, Del-aney Flinn, and Kristen De-Paolo. Still, the main issue coming into this season is lack of depth. With only nine skaters and one goalie, the girls need to avoid injuries whenever pos-sible. On the bright side, three new, but experienced freshmen Alexandra Detre, Keegan He-her, and Alexandria Palazzetti, are all expected to play lots of minutes this season.

Combining the new players with the returning players could cause havoc for opponents and potentially lead to another league champion-ship. “We may have a small team, but each girl puts her all into the game,” said senior Kathleen McNamara, The girls were able to defeat Portledge, their toughest opponent thus far. The secret? “By listen-ing to our coach and playing

smart,” said goalie Maggie O’Connell, a junior. Girls’ varsity hockey al-ways ends up facing Portledge in the league finals. Since they could compete at a high level with Portledge, even with the limited bench they have, helped the team realize that they have a shot to keep the streak alive. “The reason we are so successful is that everyone wants to be out there,” Conine said. “It has been tough physi-cally, but our coach has given

us the right systems which con-tinue to work.” Currently, the girls have a record of thirteen wins and zero losses, with key wins over Wyoming Seminary (PA) and Porledge (NY). the girls look to finish the regular season on a high note and carry their momentum into postseason play. Given their impressive record so far, reclaiming their sixth straight league champion-ship looks quite possible.

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Last year, for the first time in MBS history, boys’ varsity hockey became co-champions in the state final game at Pruden-tial Center against Christian Brothers Academy of Lincroft, with a nail-biting three periods ending in a tie of 4-4. After earn-ing the shared title and a record of 21-5-2, expectations are high for this season, but Crimson puck is thirsty for more. Still, that won’t be easy. The team lost two key players to graduation and began the sea-son with a disappointing loss against Portledge, on December 1, ending in a score of 7-3. “It definitely was not the start we were looking for,” said co-captain Brian Andrzejewski. Since then, varsity hockey has picked up the pace. Crimson Puck bounced back, defeat-ing Morristown High, Seton Hall, Kinnelon, Don Bosco, Randolph, and Princeton Day School. Along with a few tied games and 3 more losses, the team holds an inconsistent re-cord of 11-6-4. “We have recovered since then with a few big wins,” An-drzejewski said, “but still have a lot of work to do.”

Assistant Coach Jason Zuck admits to losing two key play-ers, Luke Moser and Michael Meisenbacher, but remains op-timistic. “We lost two substantial for-wards from last year. They were two offensive threats,” senior of-fensive player Teddy Hatfield said. Still, Hatfield agrees the team still remains strong. “As long as we can stay dis-ciplined, I think we can make it back to the rock,” Andrzejewski

said. Seasoned players alone and in combinations fortify the rest of the team. Working from the back with James Callahan, Ryan Palaz-zetti along with Christian and AJ DiCesare, the team has a strong force in its defensive line. The DiCesares are big and physical, while Callahan and Palazetti are more finesse play-ers. The attack line consists of

some powerful players that are key components to the team. With Thomas Rago and Alex Boroweic’s aggressive and effec-tive plays, Teddy Hatfield, Will Bonnelli and Brayden Patricia form a powerful offensive line. “We arguably have the stron-gest defense in the state, “ said Coach Zuck,” but I think we lack depth offensively. We have some guys on forward, Boro-weic, Brunner-Grande, Rago, the DiCesares, who are really

strong.” Regardless of the team’s disappointments, Hatfield has faith in the team’s potential along with the continuing sea-son. “The only thing that would top last season would be a win in state championship rather than a tie. And I think that is very possible for the season,” said Hatfield.

Thirsty for more By eva raGo and saM siraGusa

Boys’ Hockey:

Photo: Chelsea KramerKendall Cornine (left) scores a goal against the Hun School on January 14 as Keegan Heher watches (right).

Girls’ Hockey:

Dynasty in the makingBy Max Matilsky

Photo: Alexa RojekThomas Rago (13) and Christ Brunner-Grande (11) surround Chatham’s goal at the game on January 23rd. The score was 2-3.