November Issue by The Burlingame B Newspaper

W H AT ’ S

INSIDE

THE

Learn about the administration’s decision to delay the senior parking spot raffle

Read about Italian exchange student Carolina Pilia and her experience in Burlingame

Undergo an evaluation of progress for the LGBTQ+ community following International Coming Out Day

Experience the Nov. 8 Brockhamption concert from the perspective of our student reporter

URLINGAME B theburlingameb.org

November 19, 2019

Issue 3 Vol. 127

Kincade fires: power outages ravage Bay Area and create complications for students

ILLUSTRATION BY RACHEL YAP

mid high winds on Oct. 26, Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) cut the power of customers across the Bay Area, including residents of Hillsborough, San Mateo and San Bruno.

BY AMELIA HARRIS

Copy Editor

PG&E provides power for more than two-thirds of California, and approximately 2.8 million people lost power during the outage, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. PG&E shut off power in hopes of preventing fires in high-risk areas following wildfires from previous years caused by poorly maintained equipment and high winds.

Though the shutoffs prevented fires in the immediate area, fires still began in Sonoma and Vallejo. While the exact cause is unknown, PG&E’s equipment is thought to have played a role. The long-lasting power outages left people without hot water and Wi-Fi, and caused food to spoil. This created challenges for students who lost power and ultimately needed to find alternative ways to perform their daily tasks. Junior Viviana Bautista had to stay after school to do homework

because she had no way of working at home, which changed her daily routine and forced her to forfeit sleep. Although her family bought flashlights and burned candles, their lack of access to hot water or their electric stove complicated their daily lives. “It just made everyday things a little bit harder,” Bautista said. Junior Peyton Chase lost power for two days during the outages, meaning she had to go to friends’ homes to do homework and her family had to go out to eat, as

much of their food spoiled. “I know it’s for the greater good of the area because the wind could have made a wildfire. But it’s just annoying because of the impact on all our lives,” Chase said. Though the outages were inconvenient for many, junior Valentin Bakir understands the reason behind them and appreciates the effort to prevent fires. “If [the power outages are] benefitting us and actually helping stop fires… I’m okay with it, but if we still continue to see fires …

[outages] won’t be useful if they’re not doing their job,” Bakir said. PG&E is beginning to update its power lines and other equipment to prevent the need for blackouts in future situations that are high risk for fires. The company is currently considering multiple ways of updating their equipment in order to reduce the risk of fires. The updates will be extensive, meaning Californians should expect power outages during the fire season to continue.

News

November 19, 2019

New student-run peer tutoring program to be integrated with Academic Center program PHOTO FROM CAROLINE YEOW

Hartmann held a meeting on Nov. 1 at lunch to introduce the peer tutoring program to prospective peer tutors. The new program will be integrated with the existing program in the Academic Center. BY CAROLINE YEOW

Senior Reporter

Biology teacher Karen Hartmann is creating a new peer tutoring program to be integrated with the current tutoring program in the Academic Center. The existing program functions as a dropin system, with tutees coming in without a fixed schedule. The new program provides more structure, matching up tutors with tutees, who will

meet regularly. Hartmann, the peer tutor coordinator at her previous school, Leland High School, expressed hope for the new program. “My goal to start this whole peer tutoring program is to inspire students to help one another and to also encourage students that don’t feel comfortable with the subject or that are stuck to have someone on campus that they can talk to and relate to,” Hartmann said.

The new program is heavily student-run; tutors and tutees are responsible for setting up their own meeting times. “I’m sort of a behind-thescenes, so the tutors that come sign up, they will specialize in certain subjects they can tutor in … the tutors will actually reach out to the tutees directly and then they will sit down and figure out a time to meet on a consistent basis. So whether it be once a week or twice a week and then they have to be held

accountable for meeting with each other,” Hartmann said. While the tutoring program in the Academic Center pays tutors, the new program, which functions as an extension of the existing program, rewards tutors with community service hours. The new program is also built into the school day, whereas the existing program is after school. Tutors specialize in the subjects they tutor in and can only tutor courses that they have

completed; they cannot tutor in courses they are currently taking. Hartmann held a meeting on Nov. 1 to introduce the program to potential tutors. In addition to meeting on their own, tutors and tutees will be able to meet on Wednesdays at lunch in Hartmann’s room. “I would love to see this program grow here, and it’s really neat to see when students genuinely want to help each other,” Hartmann said.

PHOTO BY TYLER IDEMA

Senior parking to hold off on raffle California pushes back school start time

BHS has allowed student parking to be first-come first-served which has been a huge improvement to last year’s parking situation. BY TYLER IDELMA Senior Reporter

After going three months without holding the annual senior parking spot raffle, the administration has decided to delay the raffle even further. Usually, eligible seniors enter a raffle for the 20 student parking lot spaces at the beginning of the school year, but the administration has held off on this annual custom this year. Currently, student parking is free terrain for all students. This decision is the result of the problems that the student parking raffle has caused in the past and how smoothly student parking is running now. “We didn’t have any issues with parking. So in fact parking has been going very well this year as compared to last year. We didn’t have any parking tickets, no issues with

student parking and no complaints,” Vice Principal Michele Fichera said. According to Fichera, over 100 parking tickets were handed out last year when the raffle was put in place, and some student cars had to be forcefully moved out of staff and Peninsula Tennis Club parking spots. Now, with a first come, first served student parking method, there are fewer problems with students parking in the staff or Peninsula Tennis Club spots. “Because it has been running so efficiently, I don’t think we need to have [a parking raffle],” Fichera said. Student parking is not currently a priority for the administration since, according to Fichera, this time of year has been especially busy, so the decision on whether or not to institute a raffle next year is

still in the air. Many students agree that the parking situation is running smoothly and it doesn’t need to be changed. “I currently have no problems with senior parking and I think if we keep things as is, the student parking situation will be better than if we have a raffle,” senior Araz Ordubadi said. While the parking situation seems to be running well so far, many students have been waiting to park in student parking and have been waiting on the raffle. “I have been waiting to participate in the senior raffle because it would make getting a spot easier if I were to come late for some reason. Also, seniors who do not have a first [period] would greatly benefit with a reserved spot as they do not need to park as far away,” senior Ryan Mosse said.

FOR THE OCTOBER 2019 ISSUE The October front page article by Jacob Lubarksy stated that “On Oct. 19, the San Mateo Union High School District (SMUHSD) announced that they will add 37 new cameras to the majority of SMUHSD school, costing the district approximately $3 million.” Although the district did make plans to buy new security cameras, the plan was not finalized at the time of the October publication, and the date in the subhead should have been Sept. 19. Additionally, the number 37 was not set, and the budget was speculated only. We apologize for the discrepancy.

The morning drill for many California schools will get major adjustments under a law recently signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom that mandates later start times for most students. By the 2022-2023 school year, high schools will have to start no earlier than 8:30 a.m., and middle schools will start no earlier than 8 a.m. The bill excludes “zero periods,” which are optional courses offered by some schools before the regular school day begins. The bill also exempts rural districts due to bus scheduling difficulties. This law is the first statewide response in the U.S. to overwhelming evidence that chronic lack of sleep impairs teens. Supporters of the new law include the American Academy of Pediatrics and the California Medical Association, who have cited research supporting the idea that teenagers are more likely to sleep more and reap various health and academic benefits if they wake up later. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, sleep deprivation is an important public health issue that significantly affects the public and mental health, safety, and academic achievement of students.

“I am happy for the students who are getting more sleep so they won’t be as tired in school,” senior Samantha Bollinger said. However, some opponents, such as the California Teachers Association and the California School Boards Association, worry later start times will lead to increased commute and scheduling issues. The California School Boards Association claimed the mandate “fails to respect parental decisions or consider the needs of local communities.” In addition, the bill “will disproportionately affect low-income families and prevent many students from working after school or from caring for their siblings.” Burlingame students express similar disappointments. “Personally, I feel like the late start mandate is a good idea in theory, but once you realize the late release from school, it’s not that great of an idea anymore. I think many more students would rather get in early than getting out late so they could have the rest of the day to do whatever they want,” sophomore Zoe Steinberger said. “I doubt that kids would use the extra hour given with late start to sleep a healthy amount and they would probably just end up going to bed later than before.” GRAPHIC BY MOYA LIU

CORRECTION BOX

BY MOYA LIU Business Manager

Staff Reporter

The class gave the student body a say in planning the dance by sending out polls to decide on the theme. Other students were also involved through the food. Leadership came up with the idea of collaborating with teacher Shannon Couch and her Culinary Arts classes to have the snacks made by students. “We are also working with Ms. Carter to ensure all of the food is up to code,” Gilmour said.

Freshmen Danny Hilt, Manav Chahal, Dante Verrico and Daniel Ballout take a break from the dance floor at their first homecoming.

Freshmen Amanda Nolan, Luna Dias, Jessica Dotson and Michaela Nee have fun at their first high school dance. PHOTO BY HANNA SATO

“I put myself in the mindset of when I was a freshman at homecoming,” -Heather Lee

Meanwhile, Heather Lee, the ASB vice president, worked hard on the layout and decorations for the dance. “I put myself in the mindset of when I was a freshman at homecoming,” Lee said. Lee wanted more photoshoot opportunities to allow for artistic diversity, and she made this vision come to life. Drawing inspiration from the Museum of Ice Cream and similar attractions, the bleachers were divided into three sections to allow for ample Instagram photo opportunities. “The Leadership class made the backgrounds ourselves,” Gilmour said. The photographers were limited to students this year, allowing more students to take part and increasing the community feel of the event. “We wanted to maximize the space that we have at the school,” Lee said. By using the small gym as the coat check and the foyer for food, the big gym was able to accommodate more people comfortably and allow more room for the dance floor. Many students thought Homecoming was a big success and raved about the event. “Leadership worked so hard and they did an amazing job,” sophomore Jayden Schlesinger said.

PHOTO BY HANNA SATO

The annual homecoming dance took place on Nov. 9 in the big gym. While the cheer team has usually planned the dance in the past, this year’s dance was hosted by the leadership class. The class has been planning the event since September. “We wanted to make it more student-oriented,” Associated Student Body (ASB) President Lucas Gilmour said.

PHOTO BY HANNA SATO

Panthers glow at leadership-run homecoming dance BY SAM JOHNSTONE

News

November 19, 2019

Seniors Lilly Potter, Samantha Kershner, and Sophie Saddik enjoy their last homecoming.

BY AIDAN O’SULLIVAN

Senior Reporter

At the end of the 2018-2019 school year, the administration announced that a new schedule would be put in place the following school year, with a Flex Time period to help students receive academic help during the school day. After three months of experience with the new schedule, the administration is almost ready to implement phase two of Flex Time. The staff has not yet decided what the second phase will specifically entail, but it will most likely involve students being able to go from classroom to classroom, receiving help from any of their teachers, as well as more targeted interventions in helping students get the specific help they need. This second phase is meant to address staff concerns that many students are not taking advantage of the time being given to them to

meet with teachers or work on any assignments they need to get done. “I think the issue I know students have talked about that I want to make certain we do well is being able to move between classes and is kind of dependent on making certain we’re in a place where students are taking advantage of this time and making good use of it,” Principal Paul Belzer said. Although no specific timetable has been set for when phase two or any of the other phases of flex time will begin, the staff hopes that it will be implemented by early second semester. The staff also plans to meet within the next few weeks to discuss what’s next for Flex Time, as well as receive feedback from students regarding their opinions on Flex Time. Feedback about how to improve and maximize the advantages of Flex Time will play a large role in what new aspects of phase two of Flex Time will entail. PHOTO BY AIDAN O’SULLIVAN

Students learn about phase two of Flex Time which is expected to be implemented into classrooms in the near future.

BY MOYA LIU

Business Manager

On Nov. 8, the robotics team competed in the annual MadTown Throwdown, an off-season competition hosted by MadTown Robotics and Buchanan Bird Brains at Madera High School. The competition occurred over a two-day period and attracted 48 teams from across the west coast.

“Another especially fun sector of competitions is networking and making connections. There are a large number of more established teams and it is such a valuable experience to consult them for advice.” -Olina Du The event is meant to expose new students to the expectations of more serious competitions. The Iron Panthers function with two separate teams that compete and qualify in two different national robotics competitions: the FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) and the FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC). To prepare for the competition, FRC built an entirely new robot, a triple suction climb, and spent countless hours

PHOTO COUNRTESY OF OLINA DU

Flex Time to move into Burlingame Robotics prepares for official competition season its second phase

The Iron Panthers, team 5026, competed on Nov. 8 in Madera High School with their new robot The Fathership, going up against high level teams from all across the west coast. practicing and fixing mechanical, electrical and software issues. During the competition, the team aimed to make sure everyone was engaged. Moreover, the team aspired to become more innovative. “Other than mechanical roles and driving the robot, many members helped with data analysis and collection on the statistics of all robots, which would then be used for team selections and strategy,” junior Olina Du said. “This part allowed a lot of newer members to learn and be involved in the competition, regardless of subteam.” “We took risks to prove that we can be more ambitious in terms of robot design when the actual season comes around. We also won the Wes Walter WOW

Factor award,” co-President Sydney Woo said. The award recognizes the team’s creativity and the excitement the robot contributes to the competition. Although the team lost many key members with the graduation of last year’s class, current members are working hard to learn as much as they can to ensure that everything runs as smoothly as possible before the official competition season in 2020. The Iron Panthers left with lasting experiences and look forward to finding ways to train incoming members to become more proactive and knowledgeable about the sub-team that they joined, as well as becoming more organized to incorporate business models that exist in the professional world.

Features

November 19, 2019

Burlingame’s Black Student Union is back, thanks to Tyler Johnson

ARTWORK BY ALLISON SZETU

PHOTO BY AIDEEN DELAHUNT

Junior Tyler Johnson and Christine Suen discuss during a BSU meeting. 1960s. Students gathered to fight BY AIDEEN DELAHUNT discrimination and create a betStaff Reporter ter, safer campus. They often used strikes and protests to achieve Junior Tyler Johnson decid- this, and in some cases, members ed to restart Burlingame’s Black would get arrested. BSUs have Student Union (BSU) this year. evolved and adapted in the 50 Although Burlingame did not or so years since they began, but previously have a recently active Johnson believes they are just as BSU, the first ever BSU was born critical as ever. just over 10 miles away at San “[We need a BSU] to bring Francisco State University in the awareness to our black communi-

The BSU started at San Francisco State University and has made its way down the bay. ty and a lot of the problems that, remarks, and the BSU is hoping “Anyone and everyone should unfortunately, people of African to get support from the district come... I want to emphasize that American descent are [subject] to to paint a mural over one of the you don’t have to be black … to that most races don’t ever have to spaces that was vandalized. They join the Black Student Union. We also want to start a Best Buddies have plenty of members who are experience,” Johnson said. Apart from spreading aware- program, which helps children black, and many who aren’t, and ness, Burlingame’s BSU strives to with disabilities. Burlingame’s they’re all welcome just like you promote and create a safer campus BSU emphasizes activism beyond are,” Johnson said. and make school life less difficult the black community, and they The club meets every Wednesfor everyone. Several months ago have a lot of ambitious ideas and day at lunch in room C112. the school was vandalized with want as many people as possible racist, sexist and homophobic helping.

PHOTO COURTESY OF CAROLINA PILIA

Rotary exchange student Carolina Fantasy football is a smash hit for students rience, allowing them to become game students just as it has the Pilia here for school year BY ELLIOT SKILLINGS more immersed in every game rest of the country. One of these Staff Reporter

across the league. According to Sports Business Daily, approximately 48 million people play fantasy football. The premise of the game is this: a player joins a league and drafts offensive players and a defense that they think will statistically perform well throughout the season, then each week during the NFL season, that player will play another player from his or her league. The player with the team that puts up better statistics gets more points and thus wins the matchup. At the end of the year, there is a playoff bracket to determine the winner of the league. Oftentimes the champion will win a prize of money or quirky memento the league comes up with. This competitive and in-depth experience has drawn in Burlin-

students is senior Dakota Frelin. Having played fantasy football for numerous years, it has become a staple of his fall. “It makes me care a little more about every game. It’s definitely an engaging experience,” Frelin said. Another fantasy football fanatic is senior Leo Epstein, who has also been playing for a number of years “The game has become so popular that I can’t imagine an NFL season without fantasy football alongside it,” Epstein said. With fans constantly looking for new ways to enjoy the sport that they love, fantasy football will continue to grow, meaning Burlingame students should get used to their peers discussing who they should pick up off the waiver wire.

THE BURLINGAME B

PHOTO COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

From the hallways to the senior quad and even during downtime in the classroom, one might hear someone say, “Who are you starting at flex this week?” or “Some guy in my league dropped DJ Chark, should I pick him up?” While this may seem like a foreign language to some, for a contingent of students these questions are the fuel for a passionate conversation and an intense debate about the vastly popular game Fantasy Football. Fantasy football, though invented in 1962, has experienced a Exchange student Carolina Pilia sits on a boat in her hometown of boom in popularity in the last two decades due to the growth of Cagliari in Sardinia, Italy. the internet. Through sites such BY AMELIA HARRIS al differences, namely the school as ESPN and Yahoo, fans of the environment. In Italy, high school NFL have found a complement Copy Editor students pick a subject of interest to the conventional viewing expeOriginally from the city of Ca- such as science and attend a spegliari in Sardinia, senior Carolina cialized school in that subject for Pilia was inspired to do a study five years. Pilia attended a school abroad program in the U.S. after of slightly over 1,000 students, hearing about similar programs which focused on science and from friends. Pilia is here for the math but also covered Latin and entirety of the school year through classical texts. One of her required the Rotary Youth Exchange Pro- subjects is English, meaning she gram and will stay with three host has been taking English classes for families during that time. On the 12 years. weekends she meets with other Cagliari is larger than Burlinstudents from different countries game with a population of over who are participating in the same 154,000 people and a more urban program and they go on trips to environment. Pilia has had to adplaces such as the Half Moon Bay just to the smaller suburban comPumpkin Festival. munity of Burlingame and enjoys “[My favorite part] about Bur- going into San Francisco. lingame so far is the people. I like “The school system is differmy host families, and I’m meeting ent, the people, how they intera lot of new friends,” Pilia said. act is different. It’s a whole new She has noticed a lot of cultur- world,” Pilia said of California. Burlingame students have become enamored with Fantasy Football, following a trend that spans across America.

Editor-in-Chief Managing Editor Design Editor Sports Editor Chief Photographer Business Manager Webmaster Copy Editor

Tekla Carlen Claire Hunt Rachel Yap Ethan Gardner Hanna Sato Moya Liu Ben Neuman Amelia Harris

Senior Reporters Hubert Chen Tyler Idema Aidan O’Sullivan Annie Sun Allison Szetu Caroline Yeow Jacob Lubarsky

Staff Reporters Allison Cohen Aideen Delahunt Nicole Fassina Alexia Goldstein Samantha Johnstone Conner Lyons

Website: www.theburlingameb.org Phone: (650) 558-2899 Email: theburlingameb@gmail.com Address: 1 Mangini Way, Burlingame, CA 94010

Policy Statement: The Burlingame B is a student-run newspaper with the role purpose of providing an open forum for student expression. Anything printed represents the opinion of the writer, but not necessarily that of the Burlingame B staff, the administration, or the faculty of Burlingame High School, or anyone affiliated with the San Mateo Union High School District. The Burlingame B does not discriminate against race, political oritentation, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or disability. Although The Burlingame B will never refuse to publish guest submission based on the aforementioned factors, we reserve the right to edit or not publish them.

Letters to the Editor Disagree with the writers? Bring your letters to the room A120 or email them to <theburlingameb@gmail.com>. Letters may be considered for publication. The Burlingame B reserves the right to edit for clarity, length, and accuracy. We welcome all comments.

Features

November 19, 2019

The evolution of a student photographer PHOTO COURTESY OF YOTA INOUYE

Photos taken by junior Yota Inouye show his journey through the world of photography BY JACOB LUBARSKY

Senior Reporter

hone photography student into someone who is able to understand DSLR, how to set up a tripod, set up your lighting correctly,” Tsang said. “I’m really hesitant about letting anybody take pictures of my car … and Yota is one of the few people that I trust to take photos and edit.” Inouye takes photos of anything from sports cars to dogs to his trip to Japan. Inouye knew that he could make money off his talent, so by the summer of 2019, he listed himself on Nextdoor, a website that functions as a digital board for everyone in your community. Inouye offered to take photos for any events and at a fair price. However, Inouye soon realized that he preferred to take photos of the events and people he enjoyed rather than do paid work. “I haven’t decided if I’d consider [photography] as a career, but I’ll definitely keep it as one of my hobbies,” Inouye said.

GRAPHIC BY SAMANTHA JOHNSTONE

In the past two years, junior Yota Inouye’s passion for photography has grown into a part-time job, as he now runs his own Instagram photography account and occasionally works as a personal photographer. Inouye began his photography career in the summer of 2017 at a summer program at The Putney School in Vermont. The camp is built so that campers can select a hobby, sport or academic interest they would like to explore. Inouye selected photography, as he always loved taking photos on his iPhone, but wanted to improve this skill set. “That was, like, the first time I was exposed to cameras,” Inouye said. At the camp, he was exposed to the basics of photography, including composition, darkroom pho-

tos, aperture and shutter speed. “At the summer camp, we used film cameras, which was completely different than digital cameras,” Inouye said. Inouye was eager to continue photography, so he elected to take digital photography at BHS in his sophomore year. “By [sophomore year], I learned how to edit pictures, how to use the different settings in the cameras, which really helped improve my quality,” Inouye said. He enjoyed the hobby so much that he started taking photos for his friends on his own time. Eventually, he created an Instagram page for his photos, called @sf._.pics. There, Inouye posts photos of his friends. For junior Dylan Tsang, Inouye was the only one who could capture astounding shots of his BMW E92 M3. “I’m actually really impressed, because [Inouye] was able to come from being a really amateur, iP-

Influx in bathroom graffiti creates controversy among students PHOTO BY AMELIA HARRIS

BY AMELIA HARRIS

Copy Editor

Though the graffiti in the girls’ bathrooms was noticeable last year, it would only remain for a few days before the maintenance staff cleaned it up, ridding any evidence of student vandalism. This year, doodles and phrases remain on the walls of bathroom stalls for weeks after their initial appearance. This has allowed the graffiti to accumulate, with conversations, playlists and even poems written on the walls in the girls’ bathrooms. One student, who has written in the stalls of the bathroom before, likened it to the juvenile tradition of passing notes via writing on a desk. She views it as a way for students to communicate and express their feelings in a collective space while being able to remain anonymous, rather than a way to

deface school property. She enjoys seeing people express themselves and thinks it’s important for students to have a space to do so. “It’s kind of similar to how when you were in elementary school or middle school and you could write something on your desk and the next day you’d come back and someone would have written on it. It’s one spot where a significant amount of people will pass through; it’s just people talking to one another,” the student said. The administration aims to clean up graffiti as soon as they become aware of its presence. According to Vice-Principal Markus Autrey, students who see graffiti may be inspired to add to it, which is why the administration asks the maintenance staff to clean it as quickly as possible. However, unless it is reported to the administration they do not

specifically ask maintenance to clean it and it often goes unnoticed by the maintenance staff. Though most of the graffiti in the girl’s bathroom isn’t derogatory or negative, it is still considered vandalism and is punishable by anything ranging from Friday Work Study to suspension, depending on the severity of the incident. While writing on the wall of a bathroom stall may seem minor, it creates extra work for the maintenance staff and can be harmful to the school environment. Autrey recognizes that students feel the need to express themselves, though he doesn’t think the bathroom walls are the place to do so. “It’s finding ways for students to express themselves in ways that we’re not dictating every move students make but it’s also not damaging to the school,” Autrey said. PHOTO BY AMELIA HARRIS

Graffiti in the stalls of the girl’s A-building restroom includes doodles and positive messages.

OVERVIEW BY SAM JOHNSTONE AND BEN NEUMAN Staff Reporter and Webmaster The annual Little Big Game took place on Saturday, Nov 9. For the 10th year in a row, Panthers brought home the Paw, signifying yet another win. The game was close heading into halftime as Burlingame was falling just behind San Mateo. The Panther fans were on the edge of their seats as the Bearcats stands screamed with joy, watching the score go up. The Burlingame cheerleaders made sure to keep spirits high from the sidelines. As they launched towels and shirts into the stands, students eagerly reached for them.

When halftime came, the varsity and junior varsity cheer squad joined together for a melody of songs. Highlights of the song selection include “Sicko Mode,” “Circles” and “Wow.” The crowd certainly seemed to enjoy the performance, judging by their roars of applause. The band’s marching performance also contributed to an increased sense of spirit among the crowd. Students in the stands sang along to “Dancing Queen” as the band played along on the field. The noise came to a near peak when Ben Shertstinsky, the drum major for

the band, performed a quick dance series prior to the halftime show. The second half of the game resumed as the previously ground and pound matchup became heavily slanted in the Panther’s favor when the offense got its footing and began breaking through for big plays. The defensive battle lived up to the excitement surrounding the clash through crucial forced turnovers and inspiring play from the Burlingame defensive backs. On the other side of the ball, the defense performed dominantly against the

Bearcat offense, giving up only the occasional chunk play, one of which resulted in seven points. The final score was 22-10 in favor of the Panthers. Throughout the game, the student section certainly showed San Mateo a deep sense of Panther pride. The seniors led a seemingly constant stream of cheers and chants that encouraged the players on the field.

Opinions

November 19, 2019

letters to the editor Attacking political biases only creates further division Editors, We are responding to the editorial, “Duality of Bay Area Liberalism and Conservative Ideas” by the editorial board in the Oct. 17 edition of the Burlingame B. We’d like to preface this article by saying we support the general idea presented in the article, “Duality of Bay Area Liberalism and Conservative ideas.” We support that it is important to address the bigotry present in our high school. We agree that our school is generally tolerable, but it is plagued with people who make racist, sexist, homophobic and antisemetic remarks in the form of jokes. We agree that there needs to be a conversation addressing all these issues. We do not think it needed to be based on political bias. Quotes that say “toxic and biggotted conservative backlash” further polarize our community and school based on political beliefs. It is a strong value of ours that everyone should be entitled to their own opinion, but we don’t think that it was necessary to lay blame on a political ideology for the action of an individual. Villifying all conservatives and further expanding upon a negative stigma surrounding conservatives does not help our school community,

or our education. We must not “refuse to hear ulterior viewpoints”, and should not push people into a corner. This is not a letter supporting conservative or liberal ideals; it is only a letter supporting freedom of expression and the free exchange of ideas without hate. There are aspects of both political ideologies that are negative, and stereotyping all people with one political ideology further reinforces the polarized culture of our school. Instead, we should welcome all schools of thought committed to creating a healthy environment for all students to cherish. Sincerely, Dylan Diana, Chase Cimmet, Taylor Kaufman, Noah Larkin, Ally Sorof, Marc Magdadaro, Ryan Ballout, Trevor Macko, Aydan Aguinaldo, David Shatsky, Cole Sibley, Lucas Meridith, Liam Howard, Tyler Johnson, Joshua Coleman, Jake Cilia, Tobin Lester, Calvin Potter, Aron Ryvkin, Allen Rudakov, Ryan Larkin, Justin McAuliffe, Wyatt McGovern, Emma Browning, Georgia Edmonson, Donna Douraghy, Vinhson Nguyen, Mason Rossi, Shana Kozakov, David Mehran, Alexa Dominik, Daniel Salas, Ilan Rosenbaum

Be conscious of conservative stereotypes, as they don’t apply to all Editors, I picked up your Oct. 17 edition of The Burlingame B at La Corneta yesterday on Burlingame Ave. I am very impressed with your hard work and layout; it reminds me of my high school and college days. But perhaps you could address the apparent “lack of tolerance” in the Editorial Board’s writing? You seem to express disdain for those of us that may remain or have become a bit more conservative in our beliefs and thinking than you. At the time of your writing you do not know us or our life experiences nor do we you. In our personal lifetime my husband and I have donated thousands of hours to people in the U.S. and to many abroad in numerous countries. Our views are tempered by that experience and a long life. That does not mean we do not love human beings or appreciate their differences, as they should ours. My mother was very

liberal and loving; she loved all people (unless they threatened her or her family), liberal to conservative, while not always agreeing. My father ended up being a mix of loving liberal and thoughtful conservative. Both were pacifists unless someone threatened them or family members. You might want to know that I have received death threats in the past due to my disagreement with a presidential candidate of an opposing party and thanks to a newspaper quote (that I did not approve). Is that the way we should lead our lives? We all have goals and aspirations for ourselves, for the future of our country and people of other countries, as well as family and friends. We may differ but we should have great love and understanding. Thanks for your hard work and for listening. Sincerely, Christine Stevens Kradjian

Academic standards are rising, but so are grades BY CAROLINE YEOW

Senior Reporter

ILLUSTRATION BY ALLISON COHEN

Burlingame parents put pressure and unnecessary stress on their children. Burlingame students have developed a reputation for being highly grade-motivated. This mindset is reflected by an in-

creasingly competitive academic world. Some parents obsessively check grades and pressure their kids to work harder, study more and ultimately earn grades that are up to their exceedingly high expectations. These high standards result from increased academic competition. Today, getting a job is more competitive, college is more competitive and high school is consequently more competitive. Higher standards in high school result in higher pressure on everyone. For some students, parental pressure and the widespread expectation of attending a respectable college are major sources of stress. Helicopter parents obsessively monitor their child’s academic life; in turn, teachers feel inclined to lower the standard for earning an A in order to appease everyone. This practice of awarding stu-

dents with higher grades than deserved is called grade inflation. Inflation is especially prevalent in wealthy schools, where aggressive parents pressure teachers to raise grades. At less affluent schools, parents often lack the time and resources to manipulate the grading system. Grade inflation does not only widen the disparity between wealthy and poor schools, granting wealthy students higher chances of getting into competitive schools with their high grades, but also provides an inaccurate measurement of a student’s mastery of a subject. Students, parents and guidance counselors are misled when they refer to grades as a measurement of student understanding of a subject. While grade inflation results in short term gratification – there’s nothing more satisfying than plopping a math test with a big

level of acceptance and then gave up. Junior Ruby Lawrence, a Gender and Sexuality Alliance cabinet member, describes this struggle. “We like to think we are already accepting and ‘woke’ ... so we don’t tend to make any kind of concerted effort to increase representation/acceptance of minority groups on campus,” Lawrence said. This isn’t to say that being an LGBTQ student in Burlingame is harder than the rest of the United States. Many states lack protections for gay, lesbian and bisexual youth against bullying, and even more have no such protection for transgender students. If you had to choose a place to grow up as a young LGBTQ person, it would probably be somewhere similar to San Mateo County. But contrary to the belief of many Burlingame students, we

should not stop making an effort to improve. How many times have you heard someone use “gay” as an insult or make fun of an LGBTQ person for their sexuality or gender? How many times have you heard derogatory slurs used toward either an LGBTQ person or simply in everyday conversation? We need to do better as a whole school. Even when our school attempts to help with awareness and representation, we succeed in once again excluding those we’re trying to help. On Oct. 11, National Coming Out Day, Leadership decided to do their part by creating a huge poster stating “We Are Allies” and having students sign it to show their support. It was a nice gesture and this event being held was a step forward for our school, but the execution backfired. “[It] created a sense of ostracism and alienation of

‘A-plus’ written across it on the kitchen counter – the long term consequences can be detrimental. College grading policies are incredibly high compared to what many high schoolers are used to. What students experience when they transition from high school to college is similar to being taught to swim in a two-footdeep kiddie pool and then being tossed into the ocean. Grade inflation exists at Burlingame. Often, students comment on the ease of a quiz, or on their teacher’s easy grading standards. It is understandable that students enjoy easy classes— balancing school and extracurriculars while maintaining social lives and dealing with pressures from peers and parents is difficult enough. “Some parents really focus on their kid’s grades, so when teachers ease up on grading, students

may feel a little relieved,” junior Helen Zhan said. These days, it seems that high school is a game of survival. When students are presented with the option of taking the easy road or the difficult one, it isn’t hard to imagine what they choose. Rather than working to achieve mastery, they work to achieve a good grade so they can quickly move onto their challenging classes. Ultimately, grade inflation results in students with an impressive transcript but no substance behind their numbers. Grade inflation grants these students entrance into college but leaves them unprepared for the academic stress of higher education. Grade inflation is counterproductive, giving students and parents a false sense of success when in reality, the basic foundation of understanding is not present.

Community needs to continue to support LGBTQ students Staff Reporter

The recent progress made in LGBTQ rights is monumental. The acceptance and representation for this section of the population has improved in an unforeseeably substantial way. Up until 1961, homosexuality was illegal in all 50 states and now, as of 2015, gay marriage is legal across the country. The question isn’t if there has been change; it’s if there has been enough of it on a national and local level. And the answer doesn’t reflect well on Burlingame. “Our school is doing better than a lot of other schools… But I think it could do better... I think it’s probably doing the worst of the other schools in the Bay Area,” sophomore Maddie Gillette said. It seems as if Burlingame as a community reached an adequate

PHOTO BY AIDEEN DELAHUNT

BY AIDEEN DELAHUNT

Students gather around leadership’s “We Are Allies” poster on National Coming Out Day. LGBTQIA+ students from the greater student body. ‘We Are Allies’ feels very ‘us and them.’ It implies that … the student body as a whole, although willing to be allies, is not part of this community,” Lawrence said. Leadership had good intentions, but their event wasn’t for LGBTQ students. It was for the

straight ones. Our school effortlessly spoke over the minorities to make the “allies” here feel good about themselves. Our school and our country have made a lot of progress, but we need to keep that up. We need to continue to do better.

Opinions

November 19, 2019

Potty talk: Addressing the bathroom crisis on campus Editorial Board

You have two minutes before your next class. You’ve been holding it in for over an hour. You can’t deny it any longer. You have to go. But if you’re a student at Burlingame, you’re out of luck. There’s been a noticeable trend of the administration shutting down school restrooms over the last few years, and it has left students enraged. Most recently, the boy’s bathroom in the C-building was shut down due to “misuse” on Nov. 7, causing disgruntlement among the student body. It is unknown what exactly the “misuse” was, but in the past, similar situations have occurred after widespread vaping in the bathrooms. Access to a proper lavatory is a basic human right. Our shared need to use the bathroom is the one thing that all humans have in common. Studies show that we’ll spend over 2,000 hours of our lives in bathrooms, proving just how integral restrooms are to our daily lives. Yet, at Burlingame, we’re so often denied the ability to “take care of business,” if you will. First, let’s do the math. If a student is getting the recommended eight hours of sleep per night, that means they’re spending 16 hours of their 24 hour day up and active. The average student spends

seven hours at school. That means almost half of a student’s waking day is spent on the Burlingame campus. Experts estimate people urinate an average of six to seven times a day, even reaching up to 10 depending on various circumstances. If the average student spends half of their day at school and is expected to use the bathroom at least thrice during that time, the administration’s policy of withholding appropriate access to restrooms denies basic human functionality, not to mention puts a tremendous toll on a student’s daily life. We acknowledge that student misuse of restrooms is problematic. We understand that it is easier to simply shut down the bathrooms than fix the larger problem at hand—whether that problem is vaping, vandalism or anything else. But shutting down the bathrooms is not the solution. The vast majority of students in the bathrooms are not there to smoke, they just want a place to use the restroom. The administration’s decision to penalize the entire student body for the actions of a few is unfair. However, closing the bathrooms will not stop kids from misusing them; instilling a sense of responsibility in students for their surroundings will. The school administration of-

ten chooses to prioritize discipline of a few over the comfort of many. After all, it is the administration’s job to maintain a healthy community, and it is within their jurisdiction to shut down the bathrooms if there is substantive evidence of student abuse. We’re not questioning whether the administration holds the right to shut down the bathrooms, nor their reasoning behind it. We’re simply asking whether this practice is effective, or, more importantly, fair. In order to prevent misuse of the bathrooms, we need to change the fundamental beliefs of the student body regarding their appreciation of the campus. Instead of (literally) locking the door, we need to have an open conversation as a community. We need to realize that our actions have consequences that often affect the people we’re not trying to hurt. Though vandalism may seem harmless at the time, it accumulates and creates more work for the maintenance staff. Though vaping is commonly accepted among many students, it inconveniences those who are simply trying to use the restroom. As students, we need to work together to get others to recognize that misuse of the bathrooms affects all of us. Use the bathrooms properly. Please.

PHOTO COURTESY OF TABITHA WAN

BY THE BURLINGAME B

In response to the administration’s sign, students put a meme on the bathroom door showing the “administration” saying, “Well boys, we did it. Vaping is no more.”

The Great California FreakOut: Shaking up California PHOTO COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

BY NICOLE FASSINA

Staff Reporter

The last few weeks of October were riddled with earthquake headlines, beginning on Oct.19 with a magnitude 4.5 earthquake in the Bay Area and a smaller quake in Northern and Central California the next day. On Oct. 16, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that an earthquake early warning app was ready to be released. The app, called MyShake, was released on Oct. 17 and will be accessible nationwide. The app will send an alert to users’ phones, warning people seconds before the ground starts shaking. Although this new technological advance may be reassuring

Bay Area residents can relieve their earthquake anxiety through education and preparation for “the big one.” to many, it doesn’t change the fact that California is due for an earthquake of 6.7 magnitude or higher. Millions across Califor-

nia are feeling a sense of anxiety surrounding “the next big one,” including me. It’s normal to feel scared and

take more steps to be cautious, especially since we live in an area that’s prone to earthquakes. There isn’t anything we can do to prevent naturally occurring earthquakes. But we can mitigate their effects by identifying hazards, building safer structures and providing education on earthquake safety. Scientists are saying that there is a 72% chance of a major earthquake hitting the Bay Area by the year 2043. The “big one” has the potential to be a catastrophe. Seismologists, who spend their entire lives studying earthquakes, have outlined important things you can do to help prepare for an earthquake. Before the “big one” hits, make sure that the buildings you spend the most time in are

safe, create an earthquake plan with your neighbors and be smart about your earthquake kits. It is common for many homeowners in the Bay Area to retrofit their homes in order to make is safer in the case of an earthquake, although this may not be an option for everyone. While it may not seem like these changes will make a big difference, they will help with preparedness, which is all we can do. The difference between a disaster and a catastrophe is preparedness, and while we think that we might be prepared for the “big one,” we simply aren’t. It’s our job to inform ourselves and others in order to mitigate the effects of potential future earthquakes.

Oversexualization of female heroes in the media takes away from the intended message of feminist empowerment Chief Photographer When the first female superhero emerged in the 40s, it was a historic moment for the feminist movement. The “Woman in Red,” better known as Fantomah, is a policewoman by day and superhero by night, fighting crime. At first glance, it seems like this is a harmless comic, one which furthers the feminist movement and the idea that women are just as capable as men. There’s only one issue. She’s wearing the equivalent of a leather bathing suit. Since the beginnings of female heroes, they all share the same crucial element: they’re oversexualized to the extreme. These female heroes further a message of female self-empowerment and not needing a man’s protection, but at a cost. Authors

of these comics seem to think that in order to sell, they need to portray women as sexually desirable. This concept is obviously problematic, by essentially equating women with a sexualized object and their worth with their physical aspects. No matter how many feminist messages a female heroine film can spread, none of those messages hold the same power if the character is oversexualized. Looking at the film “Charlie’s Angels,” the three protagonists are three attractive and skinny women who for the majority of the film wear all tight-clad leather outfits or next to nothing. Films such as these can serve to empower women, having a female-led cast, showing women defeating men and exceeding the expectations of women. But seeing Drew Barrymore covering her body with

only a pool floaty kind of takes away from the message of female empowerment. Additionally, the selection of actresses in these films spreads the message that the only girls who can be their own heroes are model-worthy, skinny, white women. This perpetuates the same cycle we have seen with princess movies. Young, impressionable girls see these films and want to be the women portrayed in them, giving themselves impossible and unhealthy expectations. Every girl deserves to believe that she can be her own hero, but female hero films alienate a large majority of girls; those who do not have the “perfect body,” those of color and those who are members of other minorities. The new film “Charlie’s Angels” indicates some improvement but still perpetuates the cycle of oversexualization. The

PHOTO COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

BY HANNA SATO

The new film “Charlie’s Angels,” which was released on Nov. 15, is hardly an improvement on the franchise’s past films in terms of oversexualizing its heros. actresses in this film are more racially diverse than past female hero films, but still continue to establish that in order to be your own hero, you need to be exceed-

ingly skinny and model-worthy. The motivation behind these films is not one of objectification, but over time, that is what the film ends up stating.

Sports

fall sports

November 19, 2019

VOLLEYBALL “Seeing all of our work pay off this season was such an amazing feeling,”

PHOTO BY BEN NEUMAN

-junior Neha Bandrapalli

FOOTBALL

-senior Will Pereira, team manager

PHOTO BY ALLISON COHEN

GOLF

-senior Jody Chui

“The LBG performance was definitely exciting this year because our captains choreographed most of it, which was really special because we know how much work went into it,”

-senior Julia Doherty

GIRLS WATER POLO

PHOTO COURTESY OF KRISTI ROSSI

“This season went way better than the last one because we had a lot of new freshmen who joined and we had a set practice time at one pool,”

BOYS WATER POLO

-Coach Jonathan Dhyne

PHOTO BY ALLISON SZETU

TENNIS “We saw tremendous growth in both singles and doubles in skill level, attitude and teamwork,”

-Coach Robin May

-senior Michelle Tam v

CROSS COUNTRY

“I was actually pretty calm... this time I felt prepared and had run the qualifying time a couple times before so it wasn’t very stressful,”

-senior Cooper Glavin

check out full sports articles at:

www.theburlingameb.org

PHOTO BY HUBERT CHEN

“The play of some of our underclassmen this year gives me confidence that we will improve next season,”

PHOTO BY HANNA SATO

“This year...we built a really strong community, we can rely on each other and support each other, and also teach each other new skills,”

CHEER

PHOTO BY NICOLE FASSINA

“A team of 23 people playing teams with probably double the bodies of us, our will is amazing,”

PHOTO BY CONOR LYONS

November 19, 2019