Senior publishes book to drive global policy change
Page 4 Conestoga High School, Berwyn PA, 19312
Volume 75 No. 1
October 4, 2024
Everything is getting bigger, but our options are shrinking
Boys soccer looks to continue Success after 17 players graduate
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proposed arena faces controversy Communities in Greater Philadelphia respond to new 76ers’ stadium project
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Rallying through the rain: Asian Americans United civic engagement director Wei Chen joins community members marching through the streets of Center City Philadelphia. The Save Chinatown Coalition organized the Sept. 7 rally to protest the proposed 76ers’ arena.
By Eshan Singh and Faith Zantua, Co-Copy Editor and Co-News Editor From eating at local restaurants and attending cultural festivals to visiting family and meeting friends, senior Kyle Nguyen is no stranger to Philadelphia’s Chinatown. On Sept. 7, however, he joined protestors filling the streets of Center City Philadelphia with a different goal: “No arena in the heart of our city.” “Seeing that a bunch of people — (I estimate) 3,000-4,000 people
— were walking out, marching on the City Hall over to Chinatown. It goes to show that people care about it,” Nguyen said. In July 2022, Philadelphia 76ers’ managing partners David Blitzer and Josh Harris announced a plan to build 76 Place, an approximately $1.3 billion privately funded stadium for the team. The 18,500-seat arena would open in the Fashion District around September 2031, when the 76ers’ lease on using the Wells Fargo Center, its current building, expires. Since the announcement, various worker unions and organizations have voiced support for the project, feeling that it would
bring more job opportunities and visitors to the area. Meanwhile, groups have organized to prevent the project’s implementation, such as the Save Chinatown Coalition which planned the Sept. 7 march. With developers proposing to build the arena around a block away from Chinatown’s southern end (see pg. 3, Fig. 1), members believe that its construction could harm Chinatown and other nearby communities, such as Washington Square West. Concerns include the stadium driving attention away from local Chinatown businesses, bringing increased traffic, reducing visitors to the area and gentrifying local communities.
Among the students who attended the Sept. 7 march, senior Charlize Ko is the social media lead of the organization No Arena in Chinatown Solidarity (NACS) and fears that the project may significantly harm Chinatown. “With six years of construction, what comes with that is gentrification of the nearby neighborhoods,” Ko said. “Major roadways are gonna be blocked, which is literally going to drain Chinatown of all its liveliness that we see right now. Businesses are going to have to close.” On Sept. 11, Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker hosted a meeting for the public to speak about
the proposal. One week later, Parker announced on her social media that her administration came to an agreement with the 76ers for a Center City arena and would send the related legislation to the city council for approval, aiming for introduction on Oct. 24. “This is a historic agreement,” Parker said in a video on her social media. “It means an economic opportunity plan quite frankly the likes of which have never been seen in our city, and it represents the start of an unprecedented revival of Market Street, Philadelphia’s very first commercial quarter.” Senior Audrey Nguyen, the co-vice president of Conesto-
ga’s Asian Student Alliance, often goes to Chinatown to spend time with her family and visit her grandmother who lives in the city. She disagrees with the proposal, feeling that it will have more disadvantages than benefits for the area. “I know that this may not seem like a huge deal to a lot of people, especially those who aren’t part of the Asian American community or don’t have an attachment to Chinatown,” Audrey Nguyen said. “An arena seems like a very exciting thing on the surface, but I think that there isn’t a place or circumstance in which having something fun and excit-
ing could ever really trump all the damage that it would create to this entire community.” Continued on page 3. Scan the QR code to watch an accompanying package and view a photo story about the Sept. 7 march
Conestoga students, staff adapt to schedule changes Isabelle Emmanuel and Saktisri Gowrishankar Staff Reporters
As the bell rings, students fill up the cafeteria, walk through the hallways and rush to meet friends. Benches occupy the space where lockers used to be, cleaning stations are located around the building and food is allowed in the atrium. On Jan. 2, the Tredyffrin/ Easttown school board approved a new mixed-model schedule that Conestoga implemented at the beginning of the school year. Students and teachers follow a “Garnet” and “Gray” alternating five-day schedule instead of the previous six-day cycle, with three lunch blocks in place of four. Wednesdays and Thursdays consist of four block classes and a
one-hour “Lunch and Learn” period for the whole school. Principal Dr. Amy Meisinger feels that the new schedule was a necessary change to promote the well-being of students and faculty. “We’ve had the same schedule since 1994,” Meisinger said. “We also had noticed that a number of schools around us had gone to this Lunch and Learn concept. We also wanted to see if this was something that might be beneficial to our students and something that we could do with a school of our size.” The administration introduced Lunch and Learn incrementally, with Meisinger hosting an orientation for each grade during the second week’s Lunch and Learn periods. Teachers showed a video created by Peer Mediation to famil-
iarize students with the rules of Lunch and Learn. Students can eat in the cafeteria, courtyard, hallways, classrooms and non-carpeted areas of the atrium. A “Grab-and-Go” food kiosk in the atrium during Lunch and Learn provides a variety of foods that students can purchase using their school pin. Additionally, lunch privileges permit seniors to leave campus for the Lunch and Learn period. Senior Allie Hickey acknowledges the advantages and challenges of the new privilege. “I really like that with Lunch and Learn, I’m able to not feel rushed. My friends and I have more time to sit down and enjoy a meal instead of rushing to get back,” Hickey said. “Trying to sign out and back in with the Powerschool ID has been an is-
Saktisri Gowrishankar/The SPOKE
Atrium eatery: With the implementation of the new mixed-model schedule, students eat in the non-carpeted areas of the atrium and buy food at the new “Grab-and-Go” kiosks during “Lunch and Learn.” Principal Dr. Amy Meisinger presented the regulations regarding the new privilege during the second week of school.
sue, but I know they’re trying to change that with the iPads. Overall, I think being able to leave for a longer period offers more freedom, and it’d be even better if the sign-out was made quicker.” Lunch and Learn also offers opportunities for students to review content with teachers, partake in school-wide activities and attend club meetings. Twelfth grade assistant principal Dr. Patrick Boyle posts a weekly schedule of such options on Schoology. On assigned days of each month, certain departments are unavailable to meet as faculty collaborate with each other. The new schedule introduces a passport system during Lunch and Learn for freshmen and those who misuse the privilege. Excessive violation of Lunch and Learn rules will result in a loss of privilege, and eventually, detention. During every Lunch and Learn in September and October, freshmen must have a teacher sign off in a booklet to confirm which Learn activity they completed and are not allowed to go to the atrium and library. Freshman Elaina Wang likes the schedule due to block days despite it taking some adjustment. “I like the block days because there’s less classes (students) have to think about, and even though they’re longer, they don’t feel that long to me,” Wang said. The new block periods have provided some unique educational opportunities. Science classes can utilize an entire 82-minute block to conduct lab experiments, and teachers have more time to complete in-class
Saktisri Gowrishankar/The SPOKE
Shared time: Academic Competition Club advisers Michael Cruz and Michael Palmatier speak with members during the new “Lunch and Learn” period. The school board approved the schedule, including the hour-long lunch block, on Jan. 2. work. Music teacher Christopher Nation was involved in the committee that designed the new schedule and feels that it is beneficial, providing more time to practice. “I see some big benefits for the music department. We can use Lunch and Learn to give students access to resources and material that we wouldn’t usually have time for in our curriculum,” Nation said. “I personally love the block schedule because as we’re preparing for concerts, it gives us some time to go deep into some pieces for ensembles. For students, it always takes time to unpack and repack (their belongings), and this gets rid of that so we have a much longer instructional period.” Eleventh grade assistant principal Matthew Sterenczak
Isabelle Emmanuel/The SPOKE
Lunch reunions: Students meet in the library during a “Lunch and Learn” block. Over the summer, contractors constructed alternative benches in the hallways. helped oversee the mixed-model schedule’s creation and supports the new changes. “There’s never that time of the day to take a breath. For everyone socially, emotionally, for mental
health, I think there’s so many things that we can enhance when we take that pause,” Sterenczak said. “So, I’m hugely optimistic about what this can be for us as a school community.”