As the final bell rings on a Tiger Day,
Siddarth Chellapan ’28, along with the rest
of PHS’s freshmen, heads to Peer Group to
meet up with classmates and Peer Group
leaders to discuss various
social and school-related
issues.


“It’s been beneficial for
mental health because we get
to learn more and get advice
from upperclassmen,” said
Chellapan. “It’s helped me
understand how selecting courses work
and understanding how the layout of the
whole school system works.”


In the coming weeks, around 100
current PHS juniors will find out if they
are one of the 63 applicants chosen to be
Peer Group leaders next year. As part of
the application, students have to answer
written questions, attend interviews, and
have teacher recommendations.


“It’s going to be my senior year next year,
and I feel like I’ve done a lot of what the
opportunities there are to offer here,” said
Naomi Lygas ’26, a junior applying to be a
Peer Group leader. “I just want to be able
to provide my advice for the freshmen that
obviously don’t have as much experience.”


If they are selected, the rising seniors will
attend a short leadership retreat and enroll
in a daily, year-long class on how
to be a Peer Group leader.


“We’re looking for things like
self-awareness, problem-solving
ability, compassion and empathy,
moral responsibility, [and]
good active listening skills,” said
Christian Gonzalez, a Peer Group
advisor. “At the same time, in the written
application, we’re looking for authenticity,
commitment, again, self-awareness, and
then leadership potential.”


The activities, called “outreaches,” vary
depending on the week, but are usually
centered around building community and
adapting to the challenges of high school.


“It changes a lot from group to group, but
with our freshmen, you usually have better
outreaches with more serious topics, which
seems like that wouldn’t actually happen,
but it’s like they’re more engaged with the
material. And it makes it worth being there,”
said Ava Tabeart ’25, a Peer Group leader.


The goal for all activities is to develop
a sense of community among freshmen.
“I think the most important thing is that
the freshmen feel like they are connected,
like they have a space here at PHS, which,
although a very welcoming place, is still a
high school … and it can be hard to find a
connection,” said Gonzalez.


Not only does Peer Group help freshmen
adjust to a new school
environment, it’s also a way
for seniors to develop their
leadership skills.


“I think a big part of it
is actually to learn to be
a leader of other people,”
said Hayah Mian ’25, a
current Peer Group leader.
“You’re accommodating how
[freshmen] work and how
you work, and they’re kids, so it takes a
couple of months to understand how they
work and what works best.”


However, some freshmen remain critical
of several aspects of the program.


“There’s a bunch of clubs that overlap
with peer group, so I’m sad that I can’t go
to those”, said John Patrick Aguilar ’28.
“It could [also] be a little more energetic
because most of the topics we approach with
a sort of laziness. But I think that relies on
[us] too, to bring more energy to the group.”


 Mian and other peer group leaders
are actively looking for ways that they
can improve this program
and make sure that PHS
freshmen have the best possible
experience.


“I think the way we talk
about more serious topics
[can be improved]. We talk
about gender, sexuality, race
and things, [which] I feel we
are not completely prepared
to dive deep into,” said Mian.
“[Having] more preparation and more
freedom with what you do with your
students, as not all students are the same
and learn differently, [would improve the
program].

Tower Investigates: Peer Group

PHS French teacher Sova Fisher’s journey
to PHS spans multiple continents, cultures,
and careers. Fisher spent her childhood
in England, France, Taiwan, along with
several short periods in Cambodia. After
Cambodia’s collapse to the
Khmer Rouge, Fisher’s family,
who were stranded in Taiwan,
decided to move to the United
States.


Fisher’s relationship with
language and culture has been
important throughout her
journey. She spent much of her
education in French international schools,
though she also spoke English and a bit of
Mandarin.


“I went to French schools until 8th grade,
then to an American high school, and then
to [Dartmouth]. [Though] my parents …
wanted to keep the [Cambodian] culture
and the tradition alive in the house, we
weren’t living in Cambodia most of the
time, so it was very difficult,” said Fisher.


At Dartmouth, Fisher enrolled as a premed student but later switched to a double
major in biology and French. After a brief
stint in sports publishing, she decided to
pursue a PhD in French at her husband’s
recommendation. Fisher was accepted into
a PhD program at Princeton University,
where she worked as a precept for
undergraduate French classes in addition
to her research.


“I was a little intellectually demanding,
[which] was sort of a challenge, and I
learned [after] one of the comments from
an undergrad to try [and] sort ease into the
discussion, rather than [start] with a big
question,” said Fisher.


However, after a while,
Fisher realized that she wasn’t
very excited about the job
prospects in academia if she
were to complete her PhD.


“I wrote one chapter of my
dissertation, and I thought,
‘you know what, I want to
stay here. I don’t really want to, you know,
go teach in Arkansas or Alabama.’ At a
university level, you have to go where the
job is, because there are not that many
posts,” said Fisher.


Fisher decided to apply as a French teacher
to the local Princeton Charter School, where
one of her daughters attended.
“I got hired at the Charter School …
and from the Charter School, I came to
[PHS],” said Fisher. “This is what I think is
my calling: with all this other stuff that I’ve
done in my life, it just never really sort of felt
like I made a difference or that I have the
passion for it, whereas with teaching French
… I love it. I love the culture, the language.
I love teaching it, and I love the students.”


In the classroom, Fisher strives to create
an environment where students feel engaged
with each other and with the language.


“Whenever we do presentations, she
gives us different partners and switches it
up every time, so I know everyone in that
class, and I have a really close bond with
them all,” said Penelope Cardona-Fox ’26,
a student in Fisher’s AP French class.


Fisher’s passion for language and teaching
has been noticed by students and colleagues
alike.


“In her classroom, students are expected
to participate actively. There is a lot of group
work, and the expectation is that everyone
stays in the language throughout the class,”
said Priscilla Russel, PHS’s world language
supervisor. “[Fisher] is a very passionate
teacher, and her enthusiasm is contagious.
She loves teaching French, and this comes
through in her classes.”

PHS Profile: Sova Fisher

   Having a tutor does not guarantee success. That is the mistake too many students make. The assumption goes like this: if you are struggling in a class, hiring a tutor will fix everything. A tutor will reteach the material, clarify confusion, and help you complete assignments. If you sit through lessons, understanding will come eventually. But that is not how learning works.


Students who rely on tutors as a safety net — thinking they can check out during class because they will “just relearn it later” — are setting themselves up for failure. A tutor is not a replacement for active engagement. They are not an alternative to thinking for yourself.


PHS students know this pattern too well. You can walk into the IDEAS Center on any given afternoon and see tutoring sessions happening at nearly every table. Some students are asking questions, engaging in discussion, and working through problems themselves. Others sit back, listen passively, and nod as if absorption was automatic. Then, they go home, take the test a few days later, and are surprised when their grade does not reflect all those hours with their tutor.


The reality is that success depends on active learning. That means asking questions in the moment, staying engaged with the material, and making an effort before seeking outside help. It means attempting the homework before assuming you need a tutor to walk you through it.


Tutors are not a shortcut. They should be a supplement: a way to refine understanding, clarify difficult concepts, and receive guidance on problem areas. The students who see real results from tutoring are the ones who already engage in class, who struggle first before seeking help, and who come to their tutor with specific questions instead of waiting to be spoon-fed the material. PHS offers plenty of resources for students: teachers who hold office hours, peer tutoring programs, and the IDEAS Center. However, none of it matters if students refuse to take the initiative themselves. The bottom line? If you are zoning out in class, thinking your tutor will handle it later, you are wasting time — yours, your tutor’s, and your teacher’s. The real work happens in the classroom. Tutors can help, but only if you are willing to help yourself first.

Tutors are not shortcuts to success

Conversations at PHS are often embedded with strings of expletives, which occasionally result in teachers warning students about their language. This seemingly normal occurrence demonstrates that although profanity has become desensitized for younger generations, it still carries weight for the older population and in professional environments. According to a paper from the International Journal of Literature, Language, and Linguistics (IJLLL), a survey comparing Generations X, Y, and Z reported that only 4 percent of Generation Z respondents reported no use of profanity, contrasting with a larger 43 percent of Generation X participants. Despite this disconnect between profanity and past generations, most popular curse words have deep historic roots and come directly from the Middle Ages.


According to the Saturday Evening Post, profanity in medieval times mostly revolved around religion and eventually became associated with immodesty. These examples allude to a greater trend in profanity — historically, profanity matches the needs and desires of its users and the society it exists in. For example, general profanity revolved around racial slurs in societies where racial discrimination was a norm. Today, what we define as profanity is once again changing, and it will likely cause a rift between Generation Z and older generations such as Generation X. For example, the word “damn” was considered a serious profanity in the 16th century. However, in the modern era, its profane nature has more or less dissipated. For instance, The New York Times and other major print publications have loose regulations surrounding the printing of  “damn” in article titles, but will only include the word “f—” in “highly contentious quotations and interview transcripts”. The IJLLL paper found that Generation Z is more likely to use profanity light-heartedly or in casual conversation. Words currently still generally considered profane, such as “f—” or “s—,” may join “damn” and quickly lose that designation if they continue to be used in normal contexts.


   In contrast to “damn,” certain words have had their profane statuses elevated. The r-slur, which began as a professional medical term for neurodivergent people, quickly became common profane vocabulary. After various social movements pointed out the r-slur’s derogatory nature towards neurodivergency, it began to be considered as a slur. Its slur status was then solidified in 2010 when President Barack Obama signed “Rosa’s Law,” which changed “mental retardation” to “intellectual disability.” It’s likely that the next wave of profanity will not be any new, strange words, but rather a revival of what is currently considered unacceptable. For example, most PHS students have likely heard at least one slur in the hallways. Offensive slurs such as the f-slur and the r-slur that have been phased out of popular vocabulary seem to be making a worrying comeback. Interestingly, this coincides with the rise of conservatism among U.S. youth alongside racism, misogyny, xenophobia, homophobia, etc. These ideas and associated slang spread quickly in the fast-paced digital age, contributing to the loss of meaning for otherwise offensive words.


It is important to recall, though, that these changes in profanity are generally concentrated in younger generations. Older generations are less likely to change their perception of words they have always known as profane. This results in a generational language gap — when younger generations casually use words older generations may still perceive as highly hurtful, it can cause conflict. In the workplace, which many PHS students are only years away from entering, this dissonance could have particularly negative effects. Although curse words being used more casually isn’t inherently negative, it is important for younger people to remember that language does not change at the same rate for everyone.


As we, the younger half of Gen Z, begin to enter the professional sphere and transition into a world where we are not always mostly surrounded by our peers, we should start to be more mindful of our words — we will need to communicate effectively with other people, and profane language, although more casual for young people, is intrinsically divisive.


Traditional curse words are losing their meaning for younger people as they use them as casual terms, not as expressions of significant emotion. These developments should be taken seriously, as they will not only create far-reaching professional and interpersonal consequences, but could also accelerate the use of bigoted slurs in common conversation. Although these linguistic developments seem out of our hands, by consciously making an effort to remove profanity from our vocabularies, we can still make a difference.

The evolution of profanity

For the first time in PHS history, a student-run badminton tournament took place in the Old Gym, where 12 singles players and eight pairs of doubles all tried to claim the championship title.

PHS Badminton Club leaders William Liu ’26, Kaitlyn Bian ’26, and Joseph Hu ’26 took months to plan.

“There were a lot of steps. First, we had to get approved, and then we had to get all the logistics, like the nets, the tournament order as well as [decide] who is going to judge. So there’s a lot of components, and I’m glad that we were able to get it together in the end,” said Bian.

After playing badminton in China, Liu wanted to build a community that shared his passion for the sport with his fellow students. At the club fair, the club got over 200 signups — an eighth of the entire student body.

“I’m trying to find [people] who share the same interest with me in badminton and also trying to encourage others to play this sport,” said Liu.

The co-ed tournament was held in an elimination style format, playing the best out of two sets, with each set only going up to 11 points, unlike the professional standard of 21 points.

Players had the choice to sign up for either doubles or singles, and were required to bring their equipment.

In the finale of the tournament, Akshaj Sama ’26 and Anirudh Kashyap ’25 won the doubles tournament and Yunsheng Xu ’27 took home the singles prize.

Sama initially decided to sign up for the tournament for fun and to compete with fellow students.

“I’m really happy about my win,” said Sama. “I definitely couldn’t have won without my teammate Anirudh … This experience was really fun!”

Club advisor and gym teacher Carlos Salazar remembers badminton being a tradition among the P.E. teachers and wanted to help the students at PHS get involved with the sport outside of their gym class. In his 34 years of teaching, “this is the first time” he’s witnessed such an event.

“As an advisor, my main goal is to make sure that it is a … student-oriented program,” said Salazar. “I make suggestions, support them as much as I can … basically it’s been [the leaders’] ideas [and] their support.”

Although PHS does not have an official badminton team, the tournament served as a way to connect badminton players throughout the school, regardless of their skill level or previous experience.

“I played badminton outside of school, and I think it’s a very fun sport. It’s good exercise as well,” said Bian. “I think [the tournament] positively influenced sports culture [by] getting people who normally don’t participate in sports to participate in some type of activity.”

After seeing the success of their very first tournament, Liu is optimistic about the future of badminton at PHS and even beyond.

“Maybe next time we can have an inter-school tournament. For next year, we’re gonna have the same school [event], hopefully,” said Liu.

PHS holds its first badminton tournament

With each precise stroke, Ellie Kovalick ’25 brings her team closer to the finish line. Guided by the rhythmic splash of the oars against the water, the boat inches past the others. In a succinct, combined effort, Kovalick and her teammates secure 15th place out of a total of 90 competitors in the 2024 USRowing National Championships.

Despite doing track in middle school, Kovalick began focusing on rowing as her main sport starting freshman year. She specializes in rowing eights, the largest, fastest, and most competitive type of boat.

“I started rowing the summer before my freshman year, and I kind of just knew that I loved it,” said Kovalick. “And the thing about rowing is that it’s year-round, so it’s hard to do multiple sports at once. So once I discovered that I loved rowing, I looked back. I never really looked back. I’ve never considered doing another sport since I started.”

This commitment has propelled her to find success at the highest level. Kovalick has gone to Nationals during her sophomore and junior year. In addition, her team, Mercer Juniors, was the 13th fastest in the nation last year with this year’s national championships yet to take place. However, the achievement comes with challenges.

Throughout her high school career, Kovalick has seen three changes in coaching, turning what can be a very chaotic, fast-evolving sport into a test of resilience.

“Our team has gone through a lot so there have been rebuilding years in a way, for sure. But one of the athletes has to step up and take a more active role in how we want the team culture around how we want the dynamic of our team to be,” said Kovalick. “But overall, I think we’re a resilient group, and we managed all right, even through coaching changes.”

Despite the stress, Kovalick and her team are still very competitive. Rowers have to row nonstop for races that can be up to three miles long, such as the Head of the Charles in Boston that Kovalick’s team will participate in this fall.

Kovalick’s impact isn’t limited to her contributions on the water. Yita Moss-Wang ’25, Kovalick’s teammate and long-time friend, explained what helps Kovalick set herself apart from the rest.

“What’s really unique about Ellie is … [her] consistency, every day at practice, every day on the water; and you can see that when she rows, she’s very decisive with her stroke,” said Moss-Wang.

Sam Atter, Kovalick’s coach on the girls rowing team, confirmed her dedication.

“I think that’s been a consistent theme for Kovalick from 2023 to now: her ability to be in these hard situations, these hard races, and [being] this kind of a leader, demonstrating and acting on this is just great. If you get the job done, don’t talk under pressure kind of success,” said Atter.

Here at PHS, Kovalick has taken the initiative to expand the sport of rowing to a wider audience, founding the PHS Crew Club from its few year hiatus.

“I’ve definitely been trying to get more PHS kids involved in the sport, because it’s not too good in Princeton right now. And it’s just such an awesome opportunity … I have nothing but good things to say about [Mercer Rowing],” said Kovalick.

Kovalick is now committed to continue rowing at the Division I school of Wisconsin, in addition to serving as the Collegiate Rowing Commitments Intern. As she embarks on the next chapter of her rowing career at the collegiate level, Kovalick reflects on her choice to row.

“There’s people that discover this sport their year and immediately quit [rowing], and then there’s people that stick with it. And I think I [have] just found a passion, and it’s not something I ever want to give up,” said Kovalick.

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