On March 7 and 8, the PHS Studio Band and Jazz Ensemble participated in the preliminary rounds of the New Jersey Association for Jazz Education State Festival. Across the state, 43 bands competed in different divisions, and the top nine in each division qualified for finals. Studio Band, which competed at Southern Regional High School, placed first in their division, receiving a gold rating. Jazz Ensemble, which competed at Bridgewater-Raritan High School, received a silver rating, ranking fifth place going into finals.

With all the time and dedication put into practice, Studio Band won three soloist awards, “Best Trombone Section,” and the sight-reading competition at State Prelims. Since both Studio Band and Jazz Ensemble placed in the top nine out of the 14 schools in their division, both of the bands will be competing on April 29th at Princeton High School, where all the Division II finalists are competing.

From fundraisers like Band Dances to weekly three-hour practices on Wednesday nights and weekly one-hour sectional practice, all of the players in both bands put in a great deal of effort to perfect their performances. Throughout these long practices, many of the musicians became closer with each other.

“We meet every day for three hours and have spent time working with our sections, so I’ve definitely improved. Because we spend a lot of time with our sections, I’ve definitely made friends that I otherwise would not have,” said Katherine Schorr ’26, a flute player in Jazz Ensemble.

One of the challenges that comes with performing music, especially jazz, is formulating solos on the spot. Some featured soloists in Studio Band were Kevin Huang ’23, Otto Trueman ’23, Connor Stewart ’23, Ishaan Banerjee ’24, and Alex Greenberg ’23. To ensure the solos are up to competition par, soloists practice improvising for a long time to get used to improvising mixes of rhythms and notes that will match the songs cohesively. They get acquainted with this process early on, so they are ready to perform in front of huge audiences.

“I learned how to handle myself in creative situations. At times, I was struggling to be authentic, and it was very difficult for me to find ideas. However, I was able to slowly develop a creative process that helped me get to the point I wanted to reach,” Trueman said. The musicians themselves worked hard to master each of the songs they practiced. While many songs were enjoyable to play throughout the performance, some were more difficult to master than others.

“The hardest song was definitely ‘Billie’s Bounce.’ We were all nervous getting on stage as it was many of our first times at a judged performance. It got off to a bit of a rocky start, but after a minute, we got comfortable, and things evened out. We definitely did well on ‘Have You Heard,’ our ballad. It’s an intricate and interesting Pat Metheny tune, which featured some excellent solos,” said Nate Myers ’24, the lead trumpet in Jazz Ensemble.

“For Studio Band, the hardest song was ‘Caravan,’ their closer. Jazz Ensemble’s closer was ‘La Fiesta,’ and those are really impressive competition-type songs,” said Jazz Ensemble director David Pollack. Despite all of these accomplishments, some of the players were nervous to perform on stage. Still, they were able to calm their nerves and ultimately persevere in their music, leading to great success.

“Having night rehearsals every week and weekly sectionals have given us more time to get to know each other and develop inside jokes and a fun environment while getting better. We put in a lot of individual practice, listening, and rehearsals, and we’re glad we were able to showcase our years of work. I was a bit nervous but mostly confident in the practice we put in, but it still went better than I expected,” said Studio Band member Natalie Austermann ’25.

“When you’re playing lead — especially on trumpet, in a jazz band — it’s your voice which sticks out. I had a lot of nerves getting up there, and it definitely affected my performance. I settled in after the first piece though, and I think now that I know what to expect I will be much more comfortable at future performances,” Myers said. The best way to improve at performing is by watching and learning from others. Fortunately, PHS has connections with bands across the state, and they had the opportunity to watch other bands perform throughout the night.

“We know a lot of the schools around the state because of these festivals, so it’s great to get to perform with them; schools like Scotch Plains, Fanwood, J.P. Stevens, and others. There were nine bands per night, so we got to watch the other bands when we weren’t preparing or performing,” Pollack said.

Overall, the PHS band program is held in high esteem, which is clearly shown through the band program’s output, as they are constantly pushed to improve their skills and techniques, no matter the circumstance. “All the hard work of rehearsing leads to that moment on stage,” said Pollack. “We’re really proud of both bands, and we’re only going to get better from here.”

Princeton jazz bands earn gold and silver in preliminaries

Student Takers: Upcoming Movies in 2023

saom and films

dance + student interviews

The dancer orchestrated her legs into the very first step: a plié. As her knees slowly bent into the step, the dancer’s spirits sang, and she felt confident in her skin, because even the simplest step felt that stunning. But it only took a few counts, not even five seconds into the class, for her teacher to yell across the room, “Suck in! Your stomach needs to be flat!” It was then that the euphoric feeling vanished.
   Although dance is beautiful for the viewer and can evoke great happiness in the dancer, deeply internalized body shaming of young women and misogyny are hidden beneath the layers of carefully perfected steps. This toxicity is most commonly rooted in the notion of perfection, an ideal present in all types of dance. Steps performed are meant to appear seamless, graceful, and easy to execute. To create this image, intense work is required in class and rehearsals. Sadly, this goal of being a perfect dancer can easily slip into a toxic message of body shaming and even harm. This aesthetic of the dancer body type is already very integrated into society, making it hard to notice at times, even though it is in our subconscious. It especially doesn’t help that when dance is shown to the public, the thin dancer with long legs is the one shown off for the purpose of the traditional dance aesthetic, excluding and isolating all other body types that make up the dance community. 
   The perfect ballet dancer stretches their legs and points their feet as if to make infinite extensions. They turnout, lift their leg above their head, and do many other actions that are unnatural for the human body, all while maintaining proper form. But these long lines and straight stature that comprise a proper ballet physique can easily translate into an idealized slim body type. Often, teachers tell students to suck in their stomach in order to create long positions, sometimes even commenting, “I can see your lunch.” Although this comment may not always be intended to be harmful, it is another example of body shaming that has been utilized so frequently it has become an ordinary act. 
   To achieve this ideal physique that is encouraged through body shaming, it is not uncommon for dancers to be compelled by the dance world and society in general to harmfully restrict their diets. Many teachers encourage harmful diets and exhibit favoritism towards a specific body type by giving lead roles to students with that body type. At more intense schools, some dancers have even been explicitly told they need to lose weight in order to be in a performance or to continue dancing at their school. Women who do not fit into these norms may develop insecurities and sentiments of discontent within themselves, which can contribute to the development of eating disorders and other mental health difficulties. This strain on a dancer’s health continues in the dance studio, where they frequently overwork themselves and often are in risk of a back, ankle, or foot injury in order to please their teacher’s expectations. While it would be unfair to say that male dancers don’t experience the same harmful body shaming, female dancers are more inclined to experience it because of the additional sexualization of women by directors and in the stories of the dance itself.
   One other factor that has contributed to the intense weight of body image in the dance industry is the continuous sexualization of women and feminine bodies. Providing that most storylines used in performances were written by men generations ago, they follow a very old-fashioned and stigmatized portrayal of women and their role in society. In ballets, women are often portrayed as very feminine to attract men in stories with their looks. This requires women to wear traditionally seductive clothing, act very flirtatious, and generally appeal to the male gaze. For instance, the ballet “Le Corsaire’’ builds on the stereotypes of the roles of women by centering around a pirate named Conrad who falls in love with Medora, a woman who belongs to a slave holder (who sells many other slave girls for a living). Similar to almost all other female leads in ballets, she is seen as a very beautiful figure who attracts many men. Additionally, despite being a powerful and emotional love story, Juliet in “Romeo and Juliet” is only thirteen years old and already expected by those around her to find a husband, further enabling the sexualization of young girls. In more historic or cultural dance forms and performances, such as Bharatnatyam, the female characters are often depicted playing the role of a submissive and doting wife or mother who churns butter or plays in a river. Furthermore, Hindu goddesses, who are incredibly powerful beings, are rarely portrayed in performances of Bharatnatyam, while the male deities are frequently displayed. This same idea of male characters being detailed throughout the play as heroic and adventurous is prevalent in all styles of dance. Although dance can empower women and their incredible abilities, parts of it are rooted in the old ideology of making the female body move in a way that attracts men, which is a practice that unfortunately remains established in dance today. 
   Traditional and cultural beliefs and values also play an essential role in propagating the presence of self-shaming views in dance, especially cultural forms of this art. Dances performed in Bharatanatyam and other classical Indian dance styles, for example, entail the recreation of key mythological events as well as the expression of Hindu religious stories and spiritual beliefs. Historically, Bharatnatyam was a genre of dance that could only be performed in a temple by Devadasis, women well-versed in dance and dedicated to performing to the gods and goddesses of the temple. As the dance form has passed down from dance teacher to dancer for generations, historical gender biases are common, even in modern-day performances.
   All these unrealistic and strict ideas of what a female dancer should look or act like takes away from the natural beauty of all dancers not only in appearance, but also in esteem. For instance, beauty stereotypes for women in Bharatnatyam include the promotion of colorism and Western beauty standards, something which can deeply harm the way a dancer without Western traits perceives herself. Dance is a stunning visual artform that relies on the originality of each performance and what the dancers bring to the stage to draw in the audience. If all dancers looked identical — like puppets being pulled on strings rather than outstanding human individuals who put their heart and soul into their performances — this artform would lose the emotional element that enhances even the most flawless of routines.
   Dance is a beautiful artform and sport, so dancers should be able to enjoy it without any body shaming or misogyny. This makes it increasingly important for dancers and non-dancers alike to speak up about these issues. In the end, dance is meant to be liberating, and it’s extremely disappointing that old and harmful requirements of a young female dancer’s body end up holding it back from all the amazing possibilities of what it could evolve into. Dance is already extraordinary, so a future without the toxicity that suppresses young female dancers would further the artform’s excellence, encourage more to explore its industry, and most importantly, promote a healthy atmosphere available to all. 

Backstage: a look into the ugly sexualization of women in the dance world

Historically, a woman’s body seems to be discussed in either two ways — its utility or its aesthetic. In Ryan White’s documentary “Pamela, A Love Story” (2023), the Canadian-American actress Pamela Anderson tried to set the record straight, revisiting the tragedies and scandals that made her both misunderstood and underestimated in the entertainment industry.
   The documentary begins 
with Anderson in a plain white robe with little to no makeup, her hair blowing freely in the wind.  After being shown  glimpses of her current life, the viewers are taken back to her childhood home in British Columbia, one distant from the ugliness of pop culture. The peace of mundane life abruptly ended for Anderson after being discovered on a big screen at a Canadian Football League game. Although she doesn’t go into depth about the abuse she endured or her ties to the incarceration of her friend Julian Assange, who was arrested for attempting to hack into a government computer, she doesn’t ignore the heavier topics of her history either. It could be that the topics were too personal for her to unravel in a one-episode documentary, but it also seemed that Anderson didn’t want to deviate from the purpose of this documentary — telling her true story. 
   Her covers in Playboy Magazine first introduced her to the entertainment industry, but she became more well known after starring as a lifeguard in “Baywatch,” a television show about lifeguards who patrol the beach of California. Anderson quickly rose to fame with just a few airs, her audience revisiting each episode for her curvy body and beachy blonde hair. However, as a result of being known for such things, the projects she starred in never gave her any credibility as an artist, and her image mainly revolved around her looks rather than her ability. She continued her career with premieres and films, but the media she put out was very restricted. At the height of her career, her sex tapes with Tommy Lee, a rock musician of a heavy-metal band Motley Crue, were leaked, and her widespread fame became her greatest enemy. Despite the exhausting lawsuits and negotiations for the sex tape, the sexual exploitation continued, and her career disintegrated as she closed herself off from society, never getting a proper chance or platform to reveal her side of the story. 
   It is quite ironic how Anderson was the only person that took accountability for such actions when the viewers were the people that paid for and continued exploiting her image. If it took twenty years and a Netflix documentary for people to finally acknowledge Anderson as human, how long would it take for regular women to be seen as well? It is quite peculiar how little the media in the 1990s actually knew about her other than her celebrity persona, despite the aggressive curiosity of the media and paparazzi. Even though Anderson was very carefree and optimistic in her day-to-day life, it was like people couldn’t separate her personal life and her career, blurring her identity through misogyny and bias. 
   Overall, the documentary was pleasing to watch, mainly because it was shot through Anderson’s eyes. As Anderson watched herself from films in the 1990s, viewers can sympathize with the pain she has for her naive younger self. While there’s nothing wrong with being known for your figure or looks, most of the bitterness that was expressed by Anderson came from the fact that because she was known for such things, her career wasn’t respected. It’s very often we see pop stars or brands rebranding themselves and trying to break out of their old image. However, with such raw footage of her, and most of her appeal coming from one genre, it would have been hard for her to remain relevant, as she would have to erase the Anderson that the public wanted — a carefree, sexy woman. It was fulfilling to watch Anderson relieve her frustrations by using her own words to give herself a piece of justice. Knowing she has been 
speaking up about how disregarded she was by the entertainment industry for years, this documentary reveals her true story — a narrative the public turned a blind eye to for far too long.  

Film(me) fatales: movies about women and by women - Pamela, A Love Story

Cheryl Dunye’s film “The Watermelon Woman” (1996) is a significant feminist work as it explores issues of representation, identity, and history through a Black lesbian filmmaker’s perspective. The movie’s importance lies not only in its themes regarding the aforementioned issues, but also in its innovative approach to storytelling, which combines fictional narrative with documentary-style footage and interviews.
   Dunye herself stars as Cheryl, a young filmmaker who becomes fascinated with a Black actress credited only as “The Watermelon Woman” in old movies from the 1930s and 1940s. As Cheryl digs deeper into the actress’s life, she discovers that not only was the “Watermelon Woman” a lesbian, but she also had a relationship with a white director, mirroring Cheryl’s own interracial love affair. Through this parallel, Cheryl grapples with issues of race, gender, and sexual orientation that still resonate today.
   What makes “The Watermelon Woman” so extraordinary is its ability to tell an engaging and entertaining story while also raising important questions about representation and history. The film’s use of real archival footage, including images of Black women in Hollywood films and documentaries, highlights the limited roles and stereotyping that Black actresses have faced throughout history. Meanwhile, the fictional narrative allows Dunye to create a positive and empowering representation of Black lesbian life, a rarity in mainstream media.
   The film’s innovative approach to storytelling is also noteworthy. Dunye uses a mix of documentary and fictional elements to convey its message, with Cheryl often breaking the fourth wall to speak directly to the camera or interacting with real people in her community. This combination creates a sense of authenticity and immediacy that draws the audience into the story and makes them feel invested and drawn into Cheryl’s captivating journey.
   	Furthermore, $5 million is generally considered a low budget for a film by most distributors. Nevertheless, despite having a meager budget of only $300,000, the film’s low production value did not compromise its appearance. Instead, the low production value enhanced the film’s overall aesthetic quality, making it stand out from other films with much higher budgets. Its rawness and grit, which teeters between reality and fiction, captures the heart of the project. In fact, I initially believed it was a real documentary with no elements of fiction, because that is how it is presented to the audience. The lack of color grading or editing preserves the original footage, resulting in a found footage/documentary style that adds to its authenticity.
   While some perceive the film’s format as deceptive, I do not believe it tricks or lies to the audience. The story of Cheryl is based on her real-life experiences, and despite the fictional setting, the story of “The Watermelon Woman” could very well be real. The film cleverly uses a mockumentary style to tell a genuine story. 

Film(me) fatales: movies about women and by women - Watermelon Woman

   Dani Franke ’23 was initially drawn to acting when she auditioned for her sixth grade middle school play, “The Christmas Carol,” with her friends. She loves acting in different genres and experimenting with her different artistic skillsets. Although theater can occasionally become stressful and competitive, being on stage with her friends encourages her to continue the activity. In the PHS rendition of the musical “Newsies,” Dani Franke played Katherine Plumber, the lead female role. Additionally, she loves singing, specifically jazz music, and is a part of the a cappella group Around 8. In the future, Franke hopes to continue her musical journey by displaying her talents on tour. 

What encouraged you to do musical theater?
I don’t think anything encouraged me to do it. I just really love it. I love being on stage and getting to sing and act with all my friends. I love to dance too, so that’s why I like musical theater, because you get to do all three at the same time.

How is your current experience in Around 8?
We’re like a family, and I love everyone in Around 8. It’s so much fun to take a song that we all want to sing, and we just sing it. We start picking up the lines, the basses start a baseline, we start a soprano melody, and someone starts singing a solo. The performances are really fun too, but really just getting to casually sing is great. 

What is the best performance you’ve put on, in your opinion?
I really loved my performance in “Curtains” last year. I was in the dance ensemble. I really love to dance, and since I didn’t have any singing parts, I got to focus on dancing. I really got to work on my acting and character analysis because I had to make up my own character and storyline, so it really helped me use that for the role I’m in right now. It was really fun, and I worked really hard to make sure I got everything perfect. 

What skills have you gained that have helped you perform effectively?
I’ve definitely improved vocally. I’m singing in jazz band, choir, and musical theater, and having all those different styles of music really helped my vocal ability excel. I’ve never really taken dance classes, but being in musicals has helped me become a better dancer. 

What do you do to calm your nerves before a show?
I like to go around and help everyone else make sure their hair and makeup is done and they’re all good. It really helps me almost forget about the fact that I’m about to go on stage. So, talking to people helps me forget about the fact that I’m going to go on stage in five minutes.
What do you love about the story of “Newsies”?
I like the idea of the underdog. The newsboys don’t have a lot, and even though the antagonist, Pulitzer, has all this power, the newsboys still come together and fight for what they believe in, which is really inspiring.

What has the process of making the musical come together been like?
It’s been so much fun, and it’s also been very stressful. First, we start blocking rehearsals, where we have scripts out with no set, which is a really long process. We also have dance rehearsals, where we learn the dances and go over them a million times. The hard thing is that sometimes we block scene one, and we learn the first dance. Then, we won’t do that for three weeks because we’re learning all the other stuff in the show, and then we just have to do it. So, it’s really hard because you want to practice what you’re working on, but you also need to make sure you practice what you already worked on. So it’s time consuming, but it’s so much fun. Once we have it all together, we get to add the set, the mics, and the costumes, and we’re able to see everything come together. Also, since we’re double cast, I get to watch the show half of the time, and seeing everything come to life is so rewarding after all that hard work.

Where do you see your career in ten years?
If I continue music, I’d hope to be with a band on a tour. If I do musical theater, I hope I get to be on a world tour of some show. If it’s not music, I’m probably going to end up going to school for psychology, social work, or possibly teaching. 

What advice would you give to anyone who wants to take part in a musical or go into singing?
Try it, 100 percent. Auditioning can be really nerve wracking, but the second it’s over, you realize it wasn’t so bad. Being a part of musical theater is so much fun, and singing is something that everyone should be able to enjoy. Don’t be afraid to join because it is such a loving and accepting community. Go with an open mind and be ready to learn.

Dani Franke ’23 discusses life behind the curtain

A&E Playlist

On Friday, March 17th at 5:30 p.m., Superintendent Carol Kelley and the Board of Education sent an email to all PPS community members stating that PHS was to undergo a leadership transition and Assistant Principals Cecilia Birge and Rashone Johnson were to temporarily assume the responsibilities of the PHS principal as of that afternoon. Former Principal Frank Chmiel was not mentioned within the email, nor was there any rationale articulated by the administration for his suspected dismissal.

Immediately following the announcement, Student Body President Ashley Chen ’23 created a petition on Change.org titled “Chmiel Has Been Fired. We demand transparency and that the Board rescind his termination.” In the petition—which has now garnered nearly 3,000 signatures—Chen and other officers of the club Cultural and Racial Equity (C.A.R.E) voiced their disappointment and anger that the process and reasoning for the decision was not shared.

“Well, I think that was a really good way to get people’s frustration and sentiments out… With the C.A.R.E. leaders, we all agreed that we should do something about the sudden abruptness of it, and I think a lot of people agree because a lot of people did sign the petition,” Chen said. Aside from just PHS students, Chmiel’s termination received backlash from hundreds of parents at PPS, who expressed concerns about the futures of their children.

“I was shaking, and I was traumatized,” said Sasha Weinstein, parent and PTO officer. “To lose him after a year and a half, I think that’s a tragedy, when he would have been able to transform this place academically.” 

More significantly, none of the staff or administration at PHS knew until shortly prior to the decision.

“Everything was happening so fast… literally Friday at three o’clock I got a phone call, so there was no time… to anticipate,” Birge said.

On Sunday, March 19, The Board of Education followed-up on their previous email, responding to the inquiries and concerns of those in the district. However, while students and parents were digging for more answers, New Jersey’s Open Public Records Act, N.J.S.A. 47:1A-10, and the privacy rights held by public employees prevented the Board of Education from revealing any more information on the termination, unless a public employee provided the Board with a written waiver of his privacy rights. The email further stated that “the Board unanimously supported, and supports the Superintendent and the difficult decisions” and that the first hour of the Board meeting on Tuesday, March 23, would be used for public comment.

“The Board reviewed [the statement] quickly…I think we knew that there would be some people that we upset, including students,” said Board of Education President Dafna Kendal in response to inquiry about prior anticipation of reaction. “The Board followed up with a statement on Sunday because we realized the one on Friday wasn’t adequate.”

Kendal also said a forewarning was impossible since the Board cannot comment on an employee’s job status. Dr. Kelley and the Board want to clarify that their inability to comment has been a source of frustration for them.

“The information shared with the press only provides one side of the situation. We respect an individual’s right to share their perspective. The law prevents me from sharing the other side and the Board of Education is also constrained. Any recommendations made to the Board of Education are based on careful consideration and data,” wrote Dr. Kelley in an email response. “It is frustrating that the district could not share any data or context with the public. Employees can waive privacy rights and make information public and if that happened, we would welcome that opportunity to publicly share more information.”

In response to the controversy, Chmiel issued a statement on March 21, stating that he was “condemned” by some at Valley Road as a “rabble-rouser” and “bullied into a decision [he] wasn’t ready to make.” Chmiel also wrote that this “pretext was not based on performance or substantively anything else” and that he was in consultation with a legal attorney. The Board of Education could not comment on the statement.

In a subsequent email on Monday, March 20, Dr. Kelley introduced her recommendation of former Robbinsivlle School District Superintendent and former PPS interim Assistant Superintendent Dr. Kathie Foster as interim principal of PHS, citing her “confidence that under her leadership, Princeton High School students will continue to thrive.” After Board of Education approval this week, Dr. Foster began her time as principal at PHS.

“Dr. Foster is a very experienced school leader. She’s not a stranger so she knows us. When she was here last year, we enjoyed working for her in her role as the assistant superintendent then. We both felt that she really understood our buildings, especially the unique part of this building,” said Birge. “She knows this community, so we’re not expecting surprises at all. Just knowing how she worked in the past, the care she has on the kids really comes through.”

Since the unfolding of this situation, PHS has offered resources and outlets for the mental distress that this may have caused to students. However, PHS staff are assuring all community members of their role in providing stability through classroom instruction.

“As I thought over the weekend about my role as a teacher, I think that it is to provide as much continuity and consistency for students as possible,” said History and Sociology Teacher Elizabeth Taylor. “There’s a lot going on, but we need to focus on teaching and learning and that’s what I can do … as a teacher.”

As PHS undergoes this transition to an interim principal and eventually a permanent principal, Birge and Johnson urge community members to remember that a well-run school is a result of a myriad of factors.

“A school is not well-run because of one person. A good school has multiple legs, if you will. A school district or a school building stands on a strong leadership team, committed, engaged families, kids who are interested in learning, caring adults, [and] fabulous teachers. If you miss one part, it’s not gonna work right, but every part has its volatility,” Birge said. “And the way to mitigate that is to engage with a team approach, and that’s what we do. We’ve seen this building go through a lot. We have done a lot for the building and continue to do so.”

Looking forward, Birge hopes simply for normalcy and fun as PHS enters the last stretch of the 2022-2023 school year.

“The ideal situation is that our seniors will have a fabulous graduation and prom. We’ll continue to watch out for senior pranks,” Birge said. “We educators live for those sorts of things. We like you kids doing those sorts of things. Our ideal situation is to celebrate the normalcy of school life.”

PPS Dismisses Frank Chmiel

“What do we want: transparency! When do we want it: now!” 
   Chants rang out in front of PHS after school on Monday, March 20 as a group of around 100 parents and students gathered to protest the removal of former Principal Frank Chmiel.
     Many of the students in attendance at the rally  hoped that it would have an impact on the decision-making process. Students, along with parents, took turns giving speeches to the other attendees describing their experiences with Chmiel and their thoughts on the matter as a whole. 
   “I hope that everyone just can see how much we love Mr. Chmiel and how we’re sad that he's gone,” said Owen Barry ’25. “As much as I hope for transparency, I know that's probably not an outcome that is possible.”
   This protest, organized by a PHS Parents Facebook group, was widely promoted on social media. The majority of the protestors appreciated Chmiel’s leadership during his time at PHS and were angered about Dr. Carol Kelley and the Board of Education’s lack of transparency. 
   A day prior to the protest, the Board of Education released a statement addressing the perceived lack of communication, referencing New Jersey’s Open Public Records Act, N.J.S.A. 47:1A-10. In the statement, the board emphasized that it could not release more information absent a decision by Chmiel to waive the privacy rights he holds as a public employee. However, for many students and parents, this statement was not enough to ease their concerns. 
   “We don't have any information. Nothing has been shared with us. The PTO has not communicated anything and this is my school community, so I want to know what's happening [and] what's going on so that we can be more informed,” said Vijayeta Singh, a PHS parent who attended the protest. 
   Chmiel had stood out as a caring principal who always listened to students and parents, causing feelings of shock and distrust to arise following his sudden dismissal. Along with concerns about transparency, the parents who attended the rally also worried that their opinions were not being taken into account by the Board of Education.
   “Unfortunately, I don't think this board is fulfilling its obligation to listen to its constituency,” said David Kahn ’90, a PHS graduate and parent. “We want to collaborate with them. I don't want to be adversarial, the parents don’t want to be adversarial. We want them simply to listen to us and represent our interests in the best way they know how. But at the moment, I don't believe they are representing our interests.”
   While some of the messaging during the protest was targetted towards members of the administration, many administrators viewed the event as a healthy opportunity for parents and students alike to have their voices heard. Rashone Johnson and Cecilia Birge, the acting principals of PHS, both supported the protest, emphasizing more than anything else the importance of safety. Along with taking measures such as blocking the PHS driveway and limiting the protestors to the edge of the high school’s property, at least one police officer was present to ensure that the protest went smoothly.
  “Support what [you] want to support, say what you need to say, hear what you need to hear. Do it safely, and we're good,” Johnson said.

Chmiel removal sparks PHS protests

Marking its 16th year of celebration, this year’s PHS Asian Fest, which took place on March 17, showcased the diversity of the many Asian cultures within Princeton. During the night, the festival provided food, cultural music, games, and performances, showcasing the many different cultures within Asia. 
   Asian Fest began at 7:00 p.m. on March 17 with "culture stations" set up around the Gym that provided attendees with the opportunity to enjoy a variety of activities.    
   “Asian-American Club [was] doing trivia … there was also calligraphy drawing, Chinese yo-yo, and … food stations where you [could] buy … different cultural foods,” said Michelle Peng ’23, president of the Asian-American Club and an Asian Fest emcee.
   After participating in the various available activities, attendees were able to watch performances put on by different PHS student groups at 8:00 p.m. One of those performances, which has been a part of Asian Fest for a number of years, was the fashion show put on by the Asian American Club.  
   “We [presented] different things like a diverse set of traditional clothing. Models [were] walking down and wearing certain clothing while we're describing it,” Peng said. 
   With an overall positive reaction from the audience, many students appreciated the various shows that were put on throughout the night.
   “I enjoyed all the different performances from all the groups. My favorite performances were the Lion Dance and Bollywood Club dance because they had so much energy. I think that the crowd really reacted well to that and matched that energy,” said Shrey Khetan ’24, who attended the event.
   However, the event didn’t just come together in one night. The planning process began months in advance, starting in December. In addition to preparing for performances, smaller details such as poster designs, food, and activity stands were also thought out. Representatives from the different clubs and the Mandarin classes met on specific days, organizing the many aspects of the event.
   “Behind the scenes, students made a lot of effort that demonstrated what they learned in their classes [and clubs]. Students designed the T-shirt and they did a lot [for] the performances. Most importantly, the students are sharing powerful content to our community. And by providing it, you have the opportunity to learn about Asian culture,” said PHS Mandarin teacher Shwu-Fen Lin.
   Before Asian Fest’s creation sixteen years ago, it was simply an idea of a few students who believed in the importance of spreading Asian culture. Members of the Asian-American, Chinese, and Japanese clubs all had a vision of starting a festival to promote Asian culture. After mentioning their ideas to Lin, a plan was set in motion to make it a reality.
   “We began the program, [so] we can celebrate their vision project together. We had a 12 percent to 15 percent Asian population, so it was a good time to introduce Asian culture to our community,” Lin said.
   With an ever-growing population of Asian Americans at PHS and in the U.S., Lin expressed the importance of displaying Asian culture to the community. Being able to share an array of historic and modern trends from different cultures that may not be well known was exactly what the clubs wanted to accomplish. Many clubs, such as Bollywood Club, performed traditional dance moves with a modern twist.
   “Getting to share music and moves with an audience is extremely important since most people wouldn’t normally see something like this. It’s also important for the Indian members to get in touch with their culture more frequently,” said Bollywood Club officer Ishaan Banerjee ’23. “Bollywood Club combines some of our favorite aspects of Indian culture, combined with some of the American traditions we know well.”
   Asian Fest was open to the school’s faculty and students, but also to the outside community free of charge — a testament to the event’s goal of making Asian culture accessible.
   “A lot more people attended the event than I expected … I think that the clubs and the school did a great job of promoting the event, making sure that there was awareness of an opportunity to have fun and enjoy the work of students,” said Henry Xu ’24.
   Asian Fest is not the only way that PHS students have been celebrating Asian culture. For example, the Japanese Club, led by Japanese teacher Risa Sakakibara, has offered cooking and dancing lessons to students at meetings. 
   “It's a lot of fun. We do a lot of dancing and they listen to a lot of traditional Japanese music. And I think it's just so different; at first they feel embarrassed, but once they get used to it's very natural,” Sakakibara said.
   After feeling more comfortable with embracing their Asian culture, many students are motivated to share their own experiences — whether it is through food, art, or even dancing — Asian Fest provided a way to do that. 
   “After watching the amazing performances at Asian Fest, I’m considering joining the Bollywood Club next year. It seemed like everyone was just having so much fun and it makes me feel secure in being open in public expression,” Khetan said.
   Asian Fest wasn’t just a fun event for students to enjoy; it also created a safe environment where students were able to express themselves and feel proud of their culture.
   “[The entire event] provides an opportunity to learn and appreciate different cultures and have fun with friends and recognize the effort put into organizing the event,” Khetan said.
   Following the end of another successful Asian Fest, both teachers and students agreed that, in addition to being fun for its attendees, this event helped create more understanding within PHS’s diverse community.
   “A lot of people make assumptions without really knowing anything, [which] causes a lot of conflict and hate to individuals,” said Sakakibara. “Education is very important to understand each other, and I hope these kinds of events spread the idea of what Asian culture [is]. And once they know their cultures, [they] will see things in different ways. And I hope a lot of people who aren’t exposed to Asian cultures came to this festival and enjoyed the diversity.”

PHS holds its 16th Annual Asian Fest, impressing attendees

Upon opening their laptops, PHS juniors were immediately faced with problems accessing the New Jersey Graduation Proficiency Assessment, which took place statewide on March 13 to 17. With some students not being able to open the test at all, the state test required for graduation left both teachers and students alike confused and worried. 
   “Monday was challenging. [Only] two-thirds of students were able to successfully submit their assessment [on Monday]. What happened was as soon as we began logging into the system [on Tuesday], we probably had 50 percent [of juniors] or maybe just slightly over that range [complete the test],” said Director of School Counseling Services Dana Karas.
   Issues opening the test started immediately. Most students didn’t have much trouble logging in, but problems started to emerge as proctors instructed students to start their tests. 
   “On Monday, despite numerous tries, my test was stuck on the loading screen and there was nothing I could do. On Tuesday, there was an error saying that the test was corrupted … and when we tried quitting and signing back in, we were stuck on the tests page where the resume button was gray,” said Matthew Chen ’24.
   The administration worked closely with the technology office and Pearson, the creator of NJGPA, in order to identify the various issues that have caused many students to sit and wait the entire morning for other students in the room who gained access. 
   “On Monday morning, schools began to log into the system and the start button was not viewable. There were some issues with our use of MacBooks, and we had other things like making sure Siri and video were shut off. And then there were certain updates that some kids just didn't push onto their computer… What happened on Tuesday was a completely internal PHS concern that arose and it had to do with our server,” Karas said.  
  Chen was one of the many students who were unable to access the tests. Due to the restrictive rules prohibiting students from doing specific work, he felt that his time was being wasted.
   “It was relatively boring since we were told that we couldn’t really use the internet … I feel like our potential time spent in class learning is being wasted on these two hours that we weren’t able to accomplish anything,” Chen said.
   Teachers and moderators were also caught off guard by this situation. Although technical errors aren’t uncommon during online testing, they have never seen something to this extent, forcing testing to be canceled on Wednesday to resolve these issues.
   “There [have been] matters where many students were trying to log on and they weren't able to, the computers were freezing up when they were loading, [which] was a big problem. We kept getting this thing that said fatal error, which again, I have no idea what that means,” said PHS science teacher and proctor Mark Eastburn.
   Despite the overwhelming number of students unable to access their tests, Eastburn applauded the tech office and counselors for their sufficient efforts and efficiency. 
   “We sent students to the tech office or to the counselors… who work incredibly hard at the school. And there were a lot of things they were trying to keep up [with],” Eastburn said.
   Facing these issues at a high volume, Eastburn believes that it was unfair for students and faculty members to bear the burden of these problems. 
   “Pearson and the state of New Jersey are the ones who are in charge of everything. And this isn't the first time we've had tech issues with online tests, and I don't think it'll be the last,” said Eastburn. “When things don't work properly, everyone gets overwhelmed, and I don't think that's necessarily fair. I don't know why it should be dependent on the school to figure everything out when this is a state of New Jersey and a Pearson thing, I don't know why they're not providing more support.”
   In order to streamline the process and minimize the number of students needing to miss class instruction time the week after for make-ups, students were allowed to take an unfinished portion of the NJGPA after they had finished that day’s section. 
   “If when they finish [they realize], ‘Oh, I still have an hour,’ the teacher can unlock a previous unit that they were experiencing issues with and allow them to make that up,” Karas said.
   Students that still had sections remaining after Friday were required to make up their testing the week after. Meanwhile, 50-minute afternoon classes were cut to 35 minutes in order to allow juniors to complete two testing sections in the morning, showing the after-effects of the interruptions at the beginning of the week. Although there were still residual consequences of poor preparation, Karas assures that the issues were addressed with urgency and care to make sure the effect on students was small.
   “It literally took a village, our entire testing team … all day to figure it out,” said Karas. “It was a lot of work and exhausting … It was equally frustrating for us, their teachers; all the proctors in the room were trying so hard to support the kids.”

Crisis and chaos emerge due to NJGPA testing issues

On March 10, the PHS Student Council held its first annual “Dodge for a Cause” dodgeball tournament. The event, which teams of students from all grades signed up for, had the objective of raising funds for Arm in Arm, a food pantry based in Trenton. 
   As it was the first time it had ever been put on, this event was in the works for months before it took place. Eventually, though, 12 teams, a DJ, and dozens of spectators filled the gym with music, cheers, and squeaks of sliding sneakers.
   “The idea was brought up by the student body council as a whole, and then we brought it to the rest of StuCo,” said PHS Student Body President Ashley Chen ’23, explaining the origin of the tournament.
   Initially, StuCo was considering options like a dance or a game night, but it decided on dodgeball with the goal of beginning a new tradition that would more directly involve students. Members of the Student Council were enthusiastic that students could enjoy themselves while also being able to help the community.
   “We settled on dodgeball because we liked the idea and … how we could support a cause without needing people to pay [the $2] for entry. Bringing cans of food for admission was a nice and different way to do [that],” said Alicia Xu, vice president of the sophomore class. 
   Along with the $20 charged for a team entry, StuCo members ran a table for concessions that participants could buy for a couple of dollars each. 
   “My friends [and I], we all really love playing dodgeball, because it’s really fun. There’s the Corner House dodgeball event and Maddie [Castillo] and I are both actually in Corner House, and we had a lot of fun there,” said Leah Rose-Seiden ’24, a member of Team Maid, explaining her motivation to sign up. 
   Even though her team didn’t end up winning the tournament, Rose-Seiden still recommends participating in StuCo events, especially fundraising opportunities. 
   “It’s a lot of fun to come to these school events, because there aren't a lot of [them], and obviously it goes to a good cause,” Rose-Seiden said. 
   The Student Council also saw “Dodge for a Cause” as a victory, and plans to repeat the tournament in following years. 
  “It is a fun tradition to continue on every year and because of its success, we can definitely expand on the idea next year,” said Xu.

Flash Features: Dodge for a Cause

For the first time since 2016, the PHS Science Bowl team took home bronze, placing third in the New Jersey Regional Science Bowl. The team whizzed through rounds, pushing buzzers to answer fast-paced questions in biology, chemistry, earth and space science, energy, mathematics, and physics. 
   The team progressed quickly through initial rounds of elimination, working collaboratively in assembly lines during tough questions. Tensions were high in the final elimination rounds of the tournament. The scores between High Tech High School and PHS sat close, with the other team leading by just a margin of two points.
    “The [round] we got eliminated in [had] a two-point difference. The score was 76 for us and 78 for the other team, and it was on a bonus. If we got this bonus we would advance to the second place, and if we didn’t, we would be in third. It was a very intense bonus,” said team member Benjamin You ’23. 
   With a team consisting exclusively of seniors, most individuals had expertise in a couple specific categories instead of focusing on all five.
“We all have different strengths, like different subjects in science, so we cover our bases pretty well,” said Science Bowl team captain George Kopf ’23. “I am the bio guy, so all of the biological sciences are my jurisdiction.”
   Kopf plays an important role as team captain, leading the team during club meetings and tournaments. During the club meetings leading up to the big day, he created practice rounds of tournaments complete with buzzers. While these club meetings were essential in exercising team members' ability to apply their knowledge, they were also paramount for the team to strengthen their collaboration skills.
   “The [team's] performance is based more on how well we work with each other [than] how well we know each other, things like that,” You said. 
   Though the team will not qualify to compete at the National Science Bowl Tournament in April, their achievements have motivated them and demonstrated how their preparation behind the scenes paid off.
   “We expected to get out pretty much immediately, so this was better than expected. [These were] encouraging results,” said team member Samuel Whitley ’23. 
   Most of the team will graduate this year, leaving behind a lasting legacy on the PHS Science Bowl team. While gaining success at regionals through hard work, the senior veterans still want to preserve the important aspect of having fun. 
   “Join Science Bowl; it’s really fun. Don’t take it too seriously,” said Kopf. “Just do what you’re interested in, and [those topics] will usually come up.”

Flash Features: PHS Science Bowl team fights for success

On Friday, March 17, at 5:30 p.m—just an hour and a half before former Principal Frank Chmiel’s scheduled appearance at the annual Asian Fest—an email from Dr. Carol Kelley and the Board of Education vaguely declared Chmiel’s departure from PPS. With no forewarning on the sudden announcement and no information on the rationale for his termination, frenzy ensued among PPS students and parents. An hour after the email, Ashley Chen ’23 and other C.A.R.E leaders created a petition, named “Chmiel Has Been Fired. We demand transparency and that the Board rescind his termination.”  Within 24 hours of the announcement, the petition had garnered over 1,000 signatures.

From the start, students never knew if demands for more transparency and a repeal of his termination would be met. Despite the uncertainty, students created petitions, demonstrated peacefully, and made statements to the BOE with passion and power, catching the attention of local and state news. Activism may not produce an obvious outcome, but that should not stop people from voicing their concerns: the indirect effects of an action may drive the most important changes.

When the PPS administration dismissed Chmiel, we could have laid low and complied with the difficult decision. Instead, students voiced that Valley Road seemed to be oblivious to our visions of PHS — and how much of it Chmiel brought to life — prior to the dismissal. The vision of PHS that students have is an environment where students could unite under school spirit and where they could feel represented, safe, and taken seriously. Before Chmiel, there was no principal who was as engaged with the students nor took student input as seriously. He instilled an enjoyable and entertaining spirit that balanced our traditional rigorous academic routine. With the first Hispanic Heritage Month and Black History Month assemblies, students felt their culture and identity was more respected than ever. 

Although Chmiel’s dismissal is unlikely to be overturned, this situation has empowered the student body to request that the Board of Education take our voices into consideration. When the Board makes decisions regarding our education and our school environment, we must be permitted to stand up against them. It’s been made abundantly clear that no matter what decisions the PPS administration will take in the future, the students and parents in our district will not be afraid to challenge these resolutions. Our district has already seen improvements made thanks to our activism. The Board of Education held a meeting on March 21st as well as the 28th, in which the board members addressed student and parent comments and concerns.

Most often when people think of student activism, they imagine students protesting against their college administrations for campus issues. On the rare occasions that high schools have protests or speak out about issues in their educational facility, they tend to be based around very threatening issues such as gun control in schools, inclusion of LGBTQ+ youth, or issues regarding mistreatment or abuse of students by teachers. Considering that Principal Chmiel’s termination amassed a peaceful protest, petitions and student outcries for transparency from the BOE, it is clear how seriously students are taking this issue. Student activism is an important tool which we must use in order to voice our opinions regarding decisions made in our very own school hallways.

The Tower calls on the Board of Education to consider the student body vision of PHS’s future when making future decisions and appointing our next principal. Only then can we close this perceived disconnect between administration and students. 

Demanding acknowledgment for our vision of PHS

The first coeducational school was established in the United States over a century ago, but gender-based discrimination still continues to run rampant in high schools across the country. In fact, a 2020 survey by Plan International found that 71 percent of girls aged 15-24 reported experiencing discrimination due to their gender. Moreover, girls do not find themselves being represented in school, where a disproportionate number of books on classroom shelves are written by men. The materials that curriculums use to educate students are important tools for building good character, and it is crucial that female perspectives are not dismissed in them.
   Emphasizing female narratives in high school English and World Language curriculums will provide a more accurate and nuanced depiction of women's history, raising awareness on crucial women's issues. Women have been among the most ingenious authors throughout history — think Mary Shelley, Charlotte Bronte, and Virginia Woolf. What is not commonly known is that these authors, and countless more, initially published their work under male names or anonymously. These authors lived under the reality that if they published under their own names, their work, no matter how good it might be, would likely be ignored or shunned. It is imperative that we aim to amplify the voices of women authors in order to recognize the barriers they overcame throughout history. 
   Today, a significant amount of bestselling books are written by women, and that number is growing by the day. In 2020, 629 of the top 1,000 bestselling fiction titles were written by women, according to The Guardian. However, this increase has not translated to school curriculums. We often praise the world-renowned Charles Dickens for making sizable contributions to English literature, but brush over names like Anne Bradstreet, Harriet Beecher Stowe, and Edith Wharton — female literary geniuses who revolutionized storytelling through prose and poetry alike. 
   Teachers have an undeniable role in instilling values in students to promote inclusivity and acceptance both inside and outside the classroom. It is not sufficient to read about the female experience from the male point of view; At school it is vital that we learn about women from books written by female authors. This issue goes beyond the PPS administration because teachers themselves live in a patriarchal system in which the male perspective is the one that is the most predominantly considered. Therefore, teachers themselves need to be taught about how to properly convey the female voice in their teaching and acknowledge the female point of view.  
   Unfortunately, books written by men have repeatedly failed to represent women, more often than not relegating them to housekeepers, inconveniences, or objects. For example, “Of Mice and Men,” a book taught to freshman students at Princeton High School, has only one female character who is portrayed as a villainous sex object. With almost every male-written book taught in class, teachers have to explain that the reason for the dated representation of women is simply a result of the time the text was written in. However, this is rarely followed up by a text that is actually representative of women.
   The importance of exposing young people to the voices of women is understated. Their stories spark meaningful conversations about women's issues, offering insight into societal standards, struggles, and oppression from a woman's point of view. This involves female students in the class, giving them a platform to speak on issues that they can relate to. Women need to be highlighted in school curriculums to prove to young girls that their experiences are important and their voices are powerful. Additionally, it is crucial to expose other students in the class to the challenges that women face every day in these books so that they develop feelings of empathy, preventing discrimination in the future.

We need more books written by women on our classroom shelves

The accepting and progressive environment of PHS and the Princeton community can often serve as a bubble, protecting us from all the bigotry that still exists, even in more liberal states such as New Jersey, but especially in the conservative South. Just as the new year commenced, thousands of anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced around the country, and several of them have already passed. One of these bills that has been making recent headlines is Tennessee House Bill 9, which prohibits drag performances on public property or in a location where the performance could be viewed by a minor. This law will lead to child abuse charges being placed not only on parents of children who happen to see the drag performance, but also on the performers themselves and producers of the performance. Another such bill that has recently been the focus of major national discourse is Tennessee House Bill 1, which makes it illegal for minors in Tennessee to access any health care that treats their gender dysphoria, such as puberty blockers and hormone treatments. Both House Bills will go into effect starting July 1, 2023.
   The effects that are bound to follow both bills will be extremely harmful to LGBTQ+ people in the U.S., specifically the youth of the community. House Bill 9 is especially likely to bring about a lack of exposure to LGBTQ+ people. Criminalizing public drag performances and explicitly hiding them away from children will not only lead to kids being unaware of the LGBTQ+ identities that exist, but it will also isolate the kids that are actually part of the community. If these identities are hidden away from them, these children will grow up resenting their own feelings. The already harmful concept that this law is based upon, when instigated in a conservative state such as Tennessee, will likely create an even more hostile environment that targets and isolates LGBTQ+ people.
   Not only is the state of Tennessee aiming to cut down on LGBTQ+ exposure, but the new legislations are also explicitly targeting transgender and gender nonconforming youth. With this bill, the medications are specifically banned for transgender and gender nonconforming youth, meaning that for cisgender children experiencing early onset puberty, these medications would still be used. The implications of Tennessee House Bill 1 will be a tremendous step backwards in the journey towards equality and justice, as the bill prevents LGBTQ+ youth from accessing medication that treats their gender dysphoria. According to a 2021 study conducted by the Journal of Adolescent Health, 75 percent of transgender and nonbinary youth who did not receive gender affirming hormone therapy experienced recent depression, compared to 61 percent of these youth who did. These numbers also correlated to rates of suicide attemption, which was 57 percent for the youth that did not receive GHAT, and 44 percent for the youth who did. Prohibiting the usage of puberty blockers and hormone therapy in minors will only lead to a greater likelihood for mental health issues in transgender and gender nonconforming youth, and it’s important to discuss why this is an issue and how we can prevent it from spreading.
   These two bills are specific to Tennessee, but don’t let that fool you into presuming that this problem is singular to that state. In the U.S. alone, we have already seen hundreds of other anti-LGBTQ+ bills introduced this year in states such as North Carolina, Oklahoma, and Montana. Luckily, New Jersey is unlikely to pass bills similar to these since we do live in a liberal state. However, that does not mean that we as PHS students and staff should not advocate for awareness regarding these bills, and advocate for the limitation and hopefully termination of these legislations. At PHS we should amplify the voices of LGBTQ+ individuals, which can be done by placing a spotlight on the Gender and Sexuality Alliance club, as well as encouraging Pride celebrations and protests all year long. 
   It is imperative that at PHS, we continue to fight for LGBTQ+ acceptance. Even though we might not be able to single handedly control the legislations passed in other states, we can still make sure our voices remain powerful. In these distressing times, LGBTQ+ individuals are being explicitly attacked, and at our school we must speak up against these hateful, harmful bills, and provide support for our LGBTQ+ friends and peers.

Tennessee: bills and bigotry

No matter how far a distance or for what purpose, family separation is always devastating. Family members rely on each other for physical, emotional and financial support; More than that, people look to their families to be there for them. Starting a family in another place, or uprooting a family and moving to a new place tears families away from their support and from those who give them comfort. Living in a new country brings up a new set of complications for family communication, as well as major cultural barriers that can be difficult to navigate especially without the loved ones for support. 
   In the U.S., a major struggle of the first and second generation immigrant experience is familial separation and cultural detachment. In our own home state of New Jersey, almost a quarter of the population was born in another country, according to a 2018 study by the American Immigration Council, making this a prominent issue that people face in our own community. Along with this separation come communication issues: not being able to see family members face to face inhibits opportunities to speak with one another and engage. As such, first-generation immigrant families can feel a sense of disconnect from their family and culture. 
   This feeling of detachment pertains to people’s personal lives as well as to students and faculty at PHS. Many people come from diverse upbringings, and many go through the similar pattern of feeling like they don’t belong in either one of their cultures. I’ve seen it happen first hand with my mother. Our family is from Pakistan, and my mom worries daily for her parents, so she makes plans twice a year to visit them. But this doesn’t solve the problem, because now she has to worry about her kids, who are still in the U.S. The issue with having family so far away is that often a person is forced to choose between their family back home and their family in the U.S. My mother feels as if she’ll miss out on important aspects of my life when she’s gone, but while she’s in the U.S., she misses extended family dinners, weddings, and other important events.
   So many families that live far apart from each other go through this: having to make the hardest decisions, having to choose, at every point in time, between being with one family or the other. Dividing our time between our family in the U.S. and our extended family back in our home country is mentally exhausting, but we keep on doing it to maintain these relationships. Traveling back to visit this extended family is great if it's feasible, but if it isn’t, there are still other ways in which families can nurture their relationships. This can be done through regularly scheduled weekly FaceTime calls, letter-writing, birthday parties on Zoom, and even indulgence in online games. Although these methods of communication may not be ideal, they still help to keep relationships alive and thriving.
   Many kids at PHS are first-generation or second-generation immigrants, and the often-hidden struggle we feel needs to be further illuminated. Students at PHS that feel disconnected from their families might need support, which is why it’s important to create a school community that everyone feels bonded to. To ensure that our school has a safe place for students in these situations, it’s important that PHS makes sure to cultivate appreciation for the different backgrounds that students have, in order to give students an opportunity to feel connected to their culture. For example, Asian Fest is a great way in which the school is actively involving many different Asian cultures in the lives of PHS students. Additionally, cultural clubs at PHS such as the Muslim Student Union club, the French club, and the Japanese club can make students feel more connected to their religion and background. Although this might not solve the prominent issue of familial separation, it may create a connective bridge between a student and their family’s culture. Although chosen families do not completely make up for loved ones who are far away, by providing support for friends, more students feel closer to their peers as a substitute for the family members that they miss.

The struggle of familial separation and cultural detachment

Twenty-five feet in the air, with all eyes on her, Geneva Kasziba ’26 gets ready to dive. She flips through the air, flawlessly executing her routine. As she makes contact with the pool water, she makes a splash barely noticeable to onlookers. The judges, impressed with her performance, raise their scorecard and give her a “10.”
   The PHS diving team was established this year when divers Kasziba and Alyce Baird ’26 wanted to compete outside of their club team practices. Both divers, with the help of the athletic director, were the driving forces behind the creation of the PHS diving team. 
   “We decided that we wanted to start diving for school and we reached out to the athletic director,” said Kasziba. “The school basically sponsors us to go ... and we represent the school ... against other schools in competitions.” 
   While Kasziba and Baird both dive for a club team outside of school, the new PHS diving team opens
new doors that they previously couldn’t have, such as competing in this year’s state diving competition.
The New Jersey state diving competition took place at Montgomery High School on February 28th. Prior to this, Baird and Kasziba qualified for states through other school competitions. At Montgomery, Baird and Kasziba placed seventh and seventeenth respectively. This was a major accomplishment for the two, as they were competing with the best divers in the state.
   Supervising the divers at competitions is PHS History Teacher and Diving Team Advisor Rick Miller, who’s son is on the same club diving team as Baird and Kasziba. Naturally, he decided to take up the offer to become the diving coach; it was easy to supervise    
the team while watching his son dive. While the divers make it look easy, the small margins and skill
required to pull off each routine highlight the difficulty of the sport. “It’s called a back and a half,” said Kasziba, when asked about one of her favorite dives. “So you do a backflip, and then you basically go in with your hands.” This complicated dive involves a lot of balance 
and precision; one miscalculation could end up creating a huge splash. 
   The season came to a close with successful results from both athletes, and the future of both divers looks extremely bright.
   “Both divers [are] very impressive,” said Miller. “As PHS freshmen, 
they have many years of diving success ahead of them.”       

PHS diving team makes a promising mark following its first year

PHS Futsal, a staple club at our school, had one of its most testing moments last month when the team “Hackeysack Club” faced off against another team “The Council,” and a series of violations from “Hackeysack Club” ultimately caused the team to be suspended from playing again. 
   This event brought up the idea of sportsmanship and to what extent we are taking it seriously. 
It’s common knowledge that sportsmanship is integral to cooperating when playing against opponents, but it’s also important that students know its deeper significance.
   Sportsmanship is more than just being nice to other people — it’s a way for people to set rules and boundaries so that the game itself isn’t inhibited. The New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, the umbrella-governing body for NJ athletic rules and regulations, has specific guidelines for how certain sports are to be played, from concussion assessments to drug testing. However, Futsal Club doesn’t have a specific set of rules to follow, as it isn’t an official sport run by the school. Nobody knows that better than PHS Athletics Director Brian Dzbenski, who admits concern over the issue.
   “You’re in a unique situation because in our club systems, we have students that take the lead,” said Dzbenski.“We do not have a national federation of high school sports futsal.”
   For example, in sports which are regulated by the NJSIAA, the rules and regulations are required to be read to the players before the match begins. Along with that, organizers of each selective sport are required to go over rules and watch webinars regarding the rules to the game, which is something that Dzebenski thinks would be helpful.
   “Making sure that the rules are upheld for competition [is important],” said Dzebenski. “We [should] have ongoing professional development or officials [so the referees] understand what the rules are.”
   More than just the rules of the game, sportsmanship can also be a way for students to learn social habits that will benefit them, even after they graduate high school and beyond. Former PHS Principal Frank Chmiel feels this is critical to student development.“Sportsmanship is something you have to carry with you as you get older,” said Chmiel. “If you remove yourself from a sport, you look back on the love you had for a sport, and appreciate the rules for the sport.”
   In the case of the futsal team, Dzebenski believes it is important that both players and fans know the rules and standards of the game, so that the sport can be played safely and be enjoyed by everybody. For example, Dzebenski recalled a moment in the Mercer County Tournament ice hockey final, during which a 
frustrated opponent fan bypassed into the Princeton fan section, knowing they weren’t allowed to enter. The fan was ultimately removed and sent back to their fan section.
   “Athletics are emotional; people are committed, and they train hard to win competitions,” said Dzebenski. “The little things like [enforcing rules and regulations] can avoid people getting frustrated.”
   For Dzebenski, rules and regulations would be meaningless if the student body didn’t know they existed. To him, spreading awareness to  PHS students is of utmost importance so that things can improve.
   Paulo Barbosa ’25 was the goalie of “The Council,” and he shared the same desire for there to be consistent application of the rules. His biggest desire was for the referees to be more involved.	   “I don’t think what was done was due to a lack of awareness, but rather to see what [the players] they could get away with,” said Barbosa. “I think the club needed to properly end the situation before it escalated.”
   When The Tower reached out to the futsal club leaders for a response, they did not reply.
   Looking into the future, there are promising signs that these altercations will be adressed and prevented.   
   With proper guidance, Dzebenski believes that the school community will demonstrate its spirit of sportsmanship.
   “I’d be more than happy to meet with [the advisors] in preparation for next year,” Dzebenski said.

The importance of sportsmanship at PHS

After winning the first set by a tiebreaker of two points, Jonathan Gu ’23 holds
the advantage and continues to fight for the state title. Although he loses the second
set, Gu shows remarkable resilience and determination, ultimately coming back on
top afer more than three grueling hours to win the third and final set. Ending his
junior year season on a triumphant note, Gu not only remained unbeaten, but also
emerged as the state singles champion, the first time a Princeton High School tennis
player has done so in four decades.
 Inspired by his brother, Gu first picked up the racket at the age of five and has
been dedicated to the sport ever since. Over the years, Gu has been honing his skills,
especially his forehand, which has become one of his greatest strengths.
 “He has a huge forehand and a huge serve,” said Melvin Huang ’24, a singles player
on the PHS varsity tennis team. “He also hits a bunch of dropshots.”
 Paired with Gu’s aggresive playstyle is his determination to win every point, no
matter the circumstance.
 “He’s just very focused. When he’s on court, his
level of play is just impressive,” said PHS Tennis
Coach Sarah Hibbert. “Even people who don’t
know tennis will walk up and be like, ‘whoa’ —
they can sense the level of play.”
 Like many players, he looks up to the Big #ree
of tennis: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak
Djokovic.
 “I try to look at what they do well, and how I can
do my best representation of what they do,” said Gu.
“They are the best tennis players of all time of course,
[so] no one is better to learn from.”
 His style of playing is modeled after different
aspects of these professional players, such as Nadal’s
physical strength, Federer’s control, and Djokovic’s
persistence, all of which he incorporates into his game.
 “I like to hit winners or keep control of the point on
my racket and don’t let my opponents [get control],” Gu said.
 His strategy evidently works, as he had a 14-0 win-loss record in
2022. Despite already having an amazing season full of achievements
as first singles on the varsity team, Gu is always striving for perfection.
 “I get frustrated when I play, when [I could] do something
better… I’m trying to improve on my serve. It’s the most important
shot in tennis,” Gu said.
 Gu’s journey has only gotten tougher as he progresses in the sport,
as his drive to improve has taken up a large portion of his time. Some
nights, he finds himself getting home at 1:00 a.m. following a tennis
tournament. But despite the major time commitment, Gu has never
considered quitting; tennis has been how he’s grown.
 “Some challenges [I’ve experienced] are fighting through a
tight match, and also just getting over tough losses,” Gu said. “Just
training hard, practicing, [and] playing lots of tournaments have
taught me how to be resilient.”
 Gu, being one of the top players on the team, inspires his
teammates, especially with his exceptional skill. He is essentially
their backbone, as his flawless record in 2022 contributed
significantly to the team’s success.
 “He’s carrying the team and sweeping first singles everyday. It’s
really nice knowing we have at least one point,” Huang said.
 Gu not only impresses others with his skills, but he also
rallies others on the team to do the best they can. Tennis is often
regarded as an individual sport, but encouragement off-court is what
keeps the team spirit alive.
 “I think he tries to encourage team spirit. We usually do captains once we start the
team, but as a senior, he will likely be one of our captains if he wants that distinction,”
Hibbert said.
 That will be up for Gu to decide as he looks forward to another successful season. As
he navigates the transition towards Division III tennis at Carnegie Mellon University,
Gu’s passion for the sport extends beyond his high school career as he anticipates
this new challenge.
 “I’m excited to play college tennis; it’s always been a dream,” Gu said. “Carnegie
Mellon is a great place to get a great education and also [to] join a really good tennis
team with some amazing people.

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