Castlemont High School held a talent show where a group performing a traditional Tongan dance called the "Haka Dancers" won first prize. The audience was supportive of all the acts. There is uncertainty around the departure of Principal John Lynch at the end of the school year and who will replace him.

1. Youth and Unheard Media Voices
Global Student Square
Beatrice Motamedi
February 2015
Palo Alto Unified Schools
Professional Development Day
Top left and bottom: A floating school in Ha Long Bay, near Ha Noi, Vietnam. Top right: Casey Miller, student co-editor-in-chief of Global Student Square,
teaches fellow students how to pitch and submit stories.

2. My JSK bio.

3. Selected front pages of The Urban Legend from 2009-2010, 2010-11 and 2011-2012
May 2009 Volume 10, Issue 4The Urban School of San Francisco
America has fallen in love
with Malia and Sasha Obama.
They’re beautiful, trendy,
young, and on the road to be-
coming role models for many
future generations. But based
on the history of presidential
children, it looks like the
Obama girls have some odds
to beat.
Coverage of the Obamas’
decision to enroll their daugh-
ters at the Sidwell Friends
School in Washington, D.C.,
made headlines in major
newspapers nationwide. Such
headlines as “Sasha and Ma-
lia’s Big Night,” describing
their first White House slum-
ber party, and “Also in Transi-
tion, the Youngest Obamas,”
describing their move into the
White House, have appeared
in The New York Times. So
much media attention has
not always been beneficial for
presidential children trying to
grow up in the public eye.
Many first children have
led troubled lives. The Bush
twins struggled with drugs
and constant partying. They
were caught up in an under-
age alcohol scandal when
caught with a fake ID. Chel-
sea Clinton was subjected to
constant media scrutiny even
before the Monica Lewinsky
affair.
Amy Carter, previously
one of the youngest children
in the White House, was
about the age of the Obama
girls when her father Jimmy
Carter became president. She
was the first child to be so
young in the White House
and the first to truly grow up
there. There were media sto-
ries dedicated to the fact that
Amy went to public school,
plus her views on nuclear
weapons (made public by her
father during a 1980 debate
with Ronald Reagan), and the
time she was seen reading
a book at the dinner table
during a state dinner. She
was not given the privacy she
deserved and to this day still
avoids confrontations with
the press.
Although they have not
always been easiest on the
presidential family, newspa-
per editors say they will do
their best to let Malia, 10, and
Sasha, 7, grow up outside of
Obama's girls
adjust to life in
the spotlight
As the school year comes to a close, Urban is
preparing to say goodbye to several faculty and staff
members,andtowelcomenewhiresforthe2009-2010
academic year.
Athletic Director Brendan Blakeley, art teacher
ChrisMcCall,ServiceLearningCoordinatorKihanna
Ross, and science teachers Gita Krishnaswamy and
Suren Tummala will be leaving for jobs and oppor-
tunities outside Urban, according to Mark Salkind,
head of school.
Greg Angilly, associate athletic director at the
Bentley School, will take over as athletic director as
of July 1, replacing Blakeley. Angilly spent six years
at St. Ignatius High School in San Francisco, where
he was head lacrosse coach and “helped transform
the lacrosse team into a nationally recognized pro-
gram,” Salkind wrote in an email to faculty and staff
in March. Urban launched its first-ever boys lacrosse
team this spring.
Chris McCall is a fixture on the Urban campus.
OriginallyfromPennsylvania,McCallcametoUrban
seven years ago when he was still a student at the
Joren Dawson (’09) is living every kid’s dream;
he's running away to join the circus.
Instead of heading to a traditional four-year col-
lege next fall, Dawson will be attending Montreal’s
National Circus School of Canada for the next three
years in order to pursue his dream of performing
professionally as an acrobat.
"It's not that I'm not going to regular college for no
good reason," says Dawson. "The point is that I am
goingtoacollegethatI havebeenlookingforwardto
for years to pursue something I have always wanted
to do."
While Dawson’s path is an unusual one, he is
not the only senior who is considering it. Whether
it’s due to a strong interest in the arts, a desire to get
out into the world or just plain fatigue, some Urban
seniors are going off the traditional path and taking
time out for a gap year or special program.
The National Circus School is devoted to circus
arts,butitalsoincorporatesotherclassespertainingto
being a circus professional. Dawson will be learning
French,business,physics,anatomyandcircusartsfor
up to 12 hours per day. All of the classes are taught
in French (At Urban, Dawson is in French 2).
Dawson began circus training by taking gymnas-
tics classes at the age of three. The years of hard work
paidoffwhenhewaschosenasoneofjust25students
to enter the school out of the 130 who auditioned. A
panelof15admissionsofficialsoversawtheaudition,
which took four days. The National Circus School
was his first choice for next year, and the only circus
school to which he applied.
Dawson’s parents are very supportive of him and
hiscircusaspirations. Dawsonsayshelooksforward
to living in an apartment in Montreal, but will miss
the Bay Area.
Legislators,too,arebeginningtoseethatstudents
donotnecessarilywanttogofromhighschoolstraight
to another academic setting. On March 30, the Sen-
ate passed the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America
Act in favor of one of President Obama’s central
causes: community service. The newly expanded
Nation Corporation for National and Community
Service will include more service opportunities for
baby boomers, bilingual citizens, and students. An
expanded AmeriCorps and Peace Corps provide
more opportunities for high school seniors looking
to take a gap year or two before college.
Private companies and nonprofits also offer op-
The road less taken: seniors who choose university of life
Goodbyes and new hires for next fall
Alex Roncal
and Nora Lalle
Staff Writers
Nora Lalle
and Phoebe Winn
Staff Writers
Lizzie Logan
Staff Writer
see TEACHERS page 14
Nobel Peace Prize winner
Shirin Ebadi spoke to a packed
auditorium at the San Francisco
JewishCommunityCenteronMay
18, touching on Iran’s feminist
movement, the country’s upcom-
ingJuneelections,andtheneedfor
peacebetweenIranandtheUnited
States.
The question-and-answer
discussion with Ebadi, an Ira-
nian lawyer and human rights
advocate,wasmoderatedbyJanet
Benshoof, president and founder
of the Global Justice Center in San
Francisco.ThefirstIranianwoman
to preside over a legislative court,
Ebadi addressed the present and
future of Iranian-American rela-
tions, bringing a striking thought-
fulness to controversial topics.
“I believe in every country we
have to begin with the commonal-
ityofourprinciples,ratherthanthe
differences,” said Ebadi, speaking
through a translator.
WhileacknowledgingthatIran
has far to go in ensuring equal
rights for women — at one point
observing that a woman in Iran is
legally worth only half as much as
a man — she urged Americans to
learn more about Iran.
“I believe that here and in the
world many people have a nar-
row, wrong impression of Iran,”
said Ebadi. “Show Iran exactly as
it is — no darker and no lighter
than it truly is.”
Ebadi was among Iran’s first
Iran's Shirin Ebadi urges peace in SF speech
Daniel Moattar
Staff Writer
SHIRIN EBADI,
a published
author, lawyer,
former judge, and
activist speaks
passionately
about human
rights, Iran, and
understanding
photo courtesy of
Don LaVange on
flickr.com, used
with permission
Gap year resources
TRAVEL THE WORLD
• See Asia or Africa and learn
about different cultures. Lan-
guage immersion and com-
munity service programs also
available. For more info, see
www.wheretherebedragons.
com.
VOLUNTEER AND SERVE
• Work with nonprofit groups
to fight poverty and illiteracy,
provide housing and make
healthcare more available
with Americorps, known as the
“domestic Peace Corps.”
Visit www.Americorps.gov.
RIDE THE RAILS
• Plan your own European ex-
pedition on Rail Europe, an af-
fordable way to travel across
dozens of countries. Head to
www.raileurope.com.
Angel Island trip marks
Asian-American
History Month
– pages 8-9
Legend writer reports
on day in life of
UCSF Emergency Room
– page 3
HIPE survey sheds light
on drug, alcohol activity
among Urban students
– page 2
The tea parties
and Obama drama
you didn't hear about
– page 13
see GIRLS page 14see GAP page 14
see EBADI page 14
Beloved teacher Gita Krishnaswamy
is one of six who will not be returning
Urban file photo
and 2013-2014
Front pages from the student newspaper at The Urban School of San Francisco, where I taught from 2008-2014.

4. http://castlecrier.tumblr.com/ Please recyclecriercastlemont@gmail.com
Castlemont principal juggles staff, students plus
his own growing family in first year of tough job
by Jacob Mathis
Staff Writer
Ever since school began on Aug.
26, Principal John Lynch has been at
the center of every controversy that’s
taken place in Castlemont’s slow
but steady transformation into one
large school from three independent
smaller schools last year.
Lynch, 34, who was vice-principal
at Castlemont’s East Oakland School
of the Arts last year, answers to
hundreds of parents and students as
well as teachers and staff. Two other
schools — Castlemont Business and
Information Technology School and
Leadership Preparatory Academy
— also are part of this year’s consol-
idation.
Early reviews of Lynch’s leader-
ship are mixed.
“I don’t feel like he’s doing any-
thing. He’s more of a figure than a
principal,” said junior Monica Lock-
ett. She criticized Lynch’s response to
a Sept. 21 fight on campus (see “Was
it race, or loyalty to friends?” page
1). "(The response) was not genuine,"
Lockett said. "He wasn't really con-
cerned with it."
ButscienceteacherAlyssaPandolfi
describedLynchas“goofy,hardwork-
ing, caring, passionate, and simply,
‘the man.’”
“He does a bunch of work behind
the scene and works extremely late
hours,” Pandolfi said.
In an effort to go straight to the
heart of it all, The Crier sat down with
Lynch to talk about how his job is
Up close with Lynch
THE MAN, ON CAMPUS Lynch takes a break
from desk work to make sure students get to classes
on time. Uniting Castlemont is his goal.
photo by Jacob Mathis
Was it race,
or loyalty to
friends?
It all started with an apple.
On Sept. 21, a piece of fruit
was thrown by an unidenti-
fied person at two students
who were playing volleyball
after lunch. Within minutes, a
huge fight erupted, involving
approximately 50 students,
forcing school officials to put
Castlemont on lockdown.
MacArthur Boulevard in
front of Castlemont was closed
for approximately 20 minutes
as Oakland police struggled to
restore control to the campus.
by Esmerelda Argueta
and Brandon Ros
Staff Writers
School Name Here
Art In ActIon
Graffiti contest inspires art, awards
photo by Youth Uprising/
used with permission
December 2012 Vol. 1, Issue 1
Castlemont High School
8601 Macarthur Blvd., Oakland, CA 94605
tAttoo YoU
Teachers define art
as the kind you wear
– page 4
INSIDE
Students and teachers
debate what caused
campus fight, lockdown
See APPLE, page 2
See LYNCH, page 2
ove:It'sasimpleword,
but the art it inspires
can be pretty cool.
On Nov. 28, the final
round of “The ‘Dopest’
Youth Graffiti Youth Artist
in Alameda County”
contest took place at Youth
Uprising, a nonprofit teen
leadership organization
located next to Castlemont.
Competitors had two
hours to make a drawing
that included the word
“love.”
First-place winner and
2012 Castlemont alumnus
Ramon Herrera won a cash
prize for his piece.
Arturo Arechiga, YU's
visual arts coordinator,
said that YU’s purpose
for the competition “was
basically to stop tagging
… to inspire some of these
taggers to become graffiti
artists.”
Arechiga is considering
a second competition
sometime early in 2013.
L
by Aide Villegas
Staff Writer
"Men can starve from a lack of self-realization as much as
they can from a lack of bread." —Richard Wright, novelist
NEW SPORTS
RULE
Athlete argues against
credit requirement
– page 6
CYBERBULLIED
Canada teen suicide
prompts reflection
– page 7
castlecrier.tumblr.com Please recyclecastlecrier@gmail.com
School Name Here
INSIDE
ART AT YOUR FINGERTIPS
Salons and at-home kits offer
new fashion trend to teens
MEN OF HAKA Left to right: Ricky Tavita, Villi Paea,
George Jones and Mackensie Feaomoeata perform a
traditional dance at the talent show. photo by Esther Gamez
Castlemont’s “Haka Dancers”
won $100 at Castlemont’s talent
show on May 23, after performing
a traditional Tongan dance.
Sophomore Villi Paea credited
"effort (and) respect" for the win.
Assistant Principal Aryn Bow-
man said that she "was really
heartenedbyallthesupportpeople
showed for each other."
CounselorandjudgeSamantha
Odom noted that the performers
were judged on "technique, stage
presence,entertainmentlevel,and
reaction from the crowd."
Throughout the show, the
audience maintained a cheerful
attitude.SophomoreDianeBeltran
said, "I cheered more for Villi's
group because they were really
into it." Junior Elijah Jones said
"the Turf Dancers should’ve won
because they were very creative."
Tongan dancers triumph
by Esther Gamez
Staff Writer
– page 4
GET REAL
How the Castle is portrayed
far from what students feel
– page 3
TWITTER STAR TREK
Astronauts tweet, use Tumblr
during 146-day voyage
– page 8
DOWNWARD TREND From left: Students Alban Lopez and Emiliano Malangi, teacher Mitchell Singsheim, and
students Kiana Henderson, Rosa Del Toro, Hernan Flores and Stephanie Vega display posters on Castlemont's
declining enrollment, including next year's expected numbers. photo by Carrie Haslanger/used with permission
see NEXT, page 7
What's next for Castlemont?
New principal
set to replace
Castle's Lynch
Studentsandstaffarewaiting
anxiously for a visit by Castle-
mont’s new principal, Vinnie
Blye, who is set to replace Prin-
cipal John Lynch for the 2013-14
school year.
Lynchanouncedhewouldnot
return to Castlemont next fall in
a surprise letter to students and
familiesjustovertwoweeksago.
Details as of press time were
sketchy,butBlyewaslistedasas-
sistantprincipalatOaklandHigh
Schoolforthe2012-13schoolyear
on that school's website. He also
served as assistant principal at
Skyline High School in 2009.
In an interview with the Crier
lastweek,AlisonMcDonald,the
OUSD’s network area executive
officer for Castlemont, declined
to comment on Lynch’s status.
But she acknowledged that
"transitions are hard” and that
“there are a lot of emotions
and feelings about” Lynch’s
announcement.
McDonald said that Blye
would be visiting Castlemont
“in a few days” and expressed
hope that students would meet
and get to know him.
OUSD spokesman Troy Flint
also declined to discuss Lynch’s
announcement but called it a
“reassignment,” not a firing.
“I don’t consider it a dismiss-
al,” said Flint.
Other than Flint’s interview
with the Crier, OUSD has not
directly communicated with
studentsorfamiliesaboutLynch.
In the letter, which Castle-
mont students and families
received over the Memorial
Day weekend, Lynch wrote that
he “will not be the Principal of
Castlemont High School for the
2013-14 school year.”
by Jennifer Almendarez,
Esmeralda Argueta
& Jazmin Stenson
Staff Writers
Students, staff stunned
by Memorial Day letter
June 2013 Volume 1, Issue 3
Castlemont High School
8601 MacArthur Blvd.
Oakland, CA 94605
"Stepping onto a brand-new path is difficult, but not more difficult
than remaining in a situation, which is not nurturing to the whole ..."
—Maya Angelou, writer
Castlemont’sfirstyearasacombinedschoolbeganlastAugust
with high hopes over the consolidation of three schools — the
East Oakland School of the Arts, the Castlemont Business and
Information Technology School, and Leadership Preparatory
School — and ended with a principal and teachers leaving, and
some elective courses cancelled due to declining enrollment.
CombiningCastlemont’sthreesmallschoolsintoacomprehen-
sive whole began with the canceling of advisory periods. More
changes over the winter and spring, such as a new tardy policy
requiring tardy students to receive passes before returning to
class, caused more confusion.
As graduation approaches, students and teachers have begun
to ponder what the next school year will offer.
“I don't have high hopes anymore,” said Kateri Dodds Simp-
son, who teaches English, adding, “I’ve been working for (the
Oakland Unified School District) for eight years.”
see LYNCH page 7
Plans for next year in flux as united school
ends transition year, loses staff, principal
by Maira Lopez, Aide Villegas and Jenny Zavala
Staff Writers
On Feb. 16, Castlemont High School held a Black
History Month assembly to celebrate the achieve-
ments of Africans-Americans throughout history.
TheassemblywasorganizedbyAfrican-American
literature teacher and School Community Partners
Dean Michael Scott, Dean of Discipline Sagnicthe
Salazar, senior student body government members
DawnMcCladdieandJahmeliaStenson,andresource
teacher Ebony Johnson.
All thought that hosting a Black History month
assembly was a good way to remind students of the
power of stories.
“It’sreallyimportantthatblackhistoryishonored
asmuchaspossible—veryimportantweupholdthe
tradition of honoring it in February,” said Johnson.
Theassemblybroughtouthiddentalents.McClad-
die sang “Summertime" and presented a timeline of
civil rights events. Johnson spoke about the different
libationsthatAfricanstraditionallyusedtohonorand
respect their ancestors, and student D’Angelo Cosby
read his prize-winning poem, “The Struggle” (see
“Castlemont Student Wins Oratorical Fest,” page 7).
Students worried that the assembly would be
monotonous and boring but were respectful during
the performances and left seeming inspired.
“It was important that — being a black person,
especially a student body president — (I) should
participateintheblackhistoryassembly,”McCladdie
said.
Castlemont students in the Senior Step-
to-College Ethnic Studies class, sponsored by
San Francisco State University and taught by
Assistant Principal Christina Villarreal, will be
Skypingwithprofessorsandgraduatestudents
from Harvard University on April 15.
The event will take place either on the Cas-
tlemontcampusorindowntownOaklandatthe
International Society for Expertise, Education
& Development, an education nonprofit that
works with students on issues of diversity and
social justice.
Ethnicstudiesistheinterdisciplinarystudy
ofdifferentracesandculturesaroundtheworld.
The curriculum can be controversial: InArizo-
na,ethnicstudieswerebannedin2011because,
according to the Los Angeles Times, one teacher
in an ethnic studies class in Tucson, Ariz., was
accused of “promot(ing) the overthrow of the
U.S. government.”
However, at Castlemont students at the
freshman and senior levels take ethnic studies
in order to learn about different cultures and
traditions. By the time a student graduates, he
or she has taken at least one ethnic studies or
multicultural studies. According to Villarreal,
Castlemont’s faculty and administration be-
lieve that it is important for young historians
to learn that history can’t be told from just one
perspective.
TheSkypesessionwithHarvardwillinclude
Castlemontseniorsfromtheethnicstudiesclass
and Harvard post-graduate scholars, who will
discuss “critical race theory” and the concept
of ethnic studies.
The spark for the Skype plan came when
Villarreal, Castlemont’s dean of culture and
an ethnic studies teacher, gave a presentation
at the Harvard Alumni of Color Conference.
Two Harvard post-graduate students,
ChristopherBrittumandYusefDaulatzai,were
inspired by the work and volunteered to talk
Ethnic studies class goes to Harvard ... on Skype
Students honor black history with assembly
By Dezire Hall
Staff Writer
It was a date to remember: The
Alameda County Science and En-
gineering Fair on March 9 marked
thedebutforthreefuturescientists
from Castlemont High School,
the only high school students
representing the Oakland Unified
School District.
Aftercompletingtheirprojects,
sophomore Laura Hernandez
received multiple recognitions,
including 4th place in the Animal
Science category, and a total of
$265.
Sophomores Balam Contreras
and Evelyn Nunez won 3rd place
in the same category, and $150 in
cash prizes.
Contreras and Nunez studied
howthenewlyinstalledheatlamps
inside of the lemur habitats at the
Oakland Zoo would affect the
creatures’visibilityandtheoverall
effectiveness of the lamps.
After extensive research and
preparation, the two presented
an amazing display that was both
well-organized and informative.
Hernandez took on the task of
reporting how removal from the
group would disturb a tamarin
mother “Mama” and her baby
“Shirley.” Her touching presenta-
tion was well-executed.
If the science and engineering
fair is any guide, though these
students surely have the talent re-
quiredtofurtherthemselvesinthe
area of science, they’ll face tough
Castle students represent at annual science fair
By Yacida Flores
& Jacob Mathis
Staff Writers
SCIENCE STARS Sophomores Evelyn Nunez and Balam Contreras
stand next to their lemur display. Castlemont students, who
were the only high school students representing Oakland public
schools at the fair, also got cupcakes from Principal John Lynch
the day after they returned with their prizes.
photo by Claire Shorall/used with permission
14%Percentage of the U.S. popu-
lation that is black, according
to the 2010 Census
Life, interrupted
Memorial honors
2012 grad, athlete
killed in car crash
April 2013
Volume 1, Issue 2
OBITUARY
CLICK ON IT
Castlemont's new and improved
school website is up
— page 2
Castlemont High School, 8601 MacArthur Blvd., Oakland, CA 94605
See SCIENCE, page 7
No matter how hard death tries it can't separate
people from love. It can't take away our memories
either. In the end, life is stronger than death.
— Norman Cousins
MOURNING DAVID MOA
Death of popular Castlemont alum, athlete
saddens school, community
— page 1
KNIGHTS2.0
By Myriam Gonzalez
Staff Writer
Approximately 300 students
attended a memorial on Feb. 14
on the Castlemont football field
during lunch to remember the
life of David Moa.
A well-known Castlemont
graduate, Moa, 19, died on Feb.
11 when the fast-moving van
he was riding in hit the center
divider and flipped over several
times on Highway 58 near Mo-
jave, Calif.
The memorial also honored
David’s sister, Malia Moa, 17;
cousin George Moa, 19; and Ra-
chel Fisiiahi, 19, Moa’s half-sis-
ter, who also were killed in the
crash. At the time of the assem-
bly, the sole survivor, 17-year-old
Hunter Halatoa, who was Moa's
cousin, was in critical condition
in the hospital.
Castlemont junior Tanny
Okusi was a close friend to Moa.
He said they did a lot of things
together, like play rugby and
other sports.
Speaking through tears, his
voice cracking, Okusi shared a
few poetic words about Moa at
the assembly:
You were the best number 8
You had a future brighter than
the sun
You were chasing your dreams
And you would run run run
You were so humble and your
passing just made the earth
tremble ...
The student audience also
was moved to tears. It was as if
everyone in the crowd had lost a
family member, even those who
didn't know Moa personally.
Friends described Moa as a
quiet but forceful presence and
an admired member of Castle-
mont’s Tongan community.
“When I met David Moa, he
seemed like the type that keeps
to himself, but in a week I found
out that he was not only the
nicest guy, he was also the most
talented,” wrote Ricky Tavita, in
a memorial to his friend.
“He not only played rugby
and football but he was also in a
band.”
Tavita knew Moa for just the
2011-12 school year, when Moa
was a senior. “During that year
David Moa trained us, worked
out with us and pushed us to
reach our limits,” Tavita wrote.
with students.
According to Villaneuva, teaching ethnic
studiesatthehighschoollevelisanewconcept
for educators.
Senior and Castlemont student body Co-
Vice President Jahmelia Stenson attests to the
valuesofethnicstudiesinthecurriculum.She
said that she believes that Harvard graduate
students can learn from Castlemont students
“how it is to be a person of color.”
Castlemont Senior Janet Vasquez plans to
tell the Harvard graduate students that “we
arehighschoolstudentsreadinggraduatelevel
(texts) by Ronald Takaki and Paulo Friere …
we can critically analyze it.”
Vasquez added that Villarreal has inspired
students with her own dedication to the sub-
ject. "The excitement and passion that Ms.
Villarreal puts into her class is what makes
everyone so enthusiastic about the readings,"
said Vasquez. "(It is) the look she gets in her
eyes when we are discussing them.”
SeniorBereniceVegasaidthatsheislooking
forward to speaking to the Harvard Educa-
tional Program “because we are the people
of color whose stories aren’t always told.”
See MOA, page 7
38%Percentage of Castlemont
students who are black, ac-
cording to Vice Principal
Aryn Bowman
By Janice Davis & Jazmin Stenson
Staff Writers
Oaktown Teen TimesOaktown Teen Times
Oakland's Teen Newspaper
June 2009 Volume 2, Issue 3News & Views of Teens in Oakland, California
Californians 21 and older who like to smoke mari-
juana may not have to worry about getting arrested if
a bill passes into law.
California would become the first state to legalize
marijuana under a bill by Assemblyman Tom Ammi-
ano, D-San Francisco. Ammiano thinks legal mari-
juana could be the answer to California’s economic
problems.
"The state of California is in a very, very precipi-
tous economic plight. It's in the toilet," Ammiano
told the San Francisco Chronicle. "It looks very, very
bleak, with layoffs and foreclosures, and schools
closing or trying to operate four days a week.”
Ammiano said it could take up to a year before the
bill comes to a vote.
State officials estimate the legalization of marijua-
na would bring in about $1.3 billion a year through
a tax of $50 per ounce, according to news reports.
Marijuana is California's biggest cash crop and is
responsible for $14 billion in sales, none of which are
taxed now.
Under the bill, marijuana would be regulated
similarly to beer, wine and liquor. The bill would
permit taxed sales to adults, but would bar sales to or
possession by those under 21.
Reaction to the proposed law was mixed at Fre-
mont Federation of High Schools.
Paul Robeson case manager Percy Foster said
making pot legal would make it “more accessible for
students" and that minors "would just send people 21
years or older to get it for them."
Nevertheless, Foster supports the bill.
Media Principal Benjamin Schmookler does not
object to the proposal because he doesn't think it will
change what is already happening with the drug.
“You can go buy weed in the next five minutes,”
he said. “People get it anyway, so (legalizing it)
wouldn’t make much of a difference”
Media Academy teacher Michael Jackson sees
economic and ethical benefits to legalizing marijuana.
“The war on drugs has failed, too many people are
in prison that should be paying taxes; nobody should
die over weed."
Police arrested a record 872,721 people for mari-
juana nationwide in 2007, according to the FBI's
annual Uniform Crime Report.
Yet other staff members are opposed to the bill.
"I don't believe marijuana should be legalized,"
said Media Academy case manager Eric DuBois.
"However, those arrested for it should not be treated
Legalization
of marijuana
a possibility After six years of being run by the
state, the Oakland Unified School Dis-
trict now has a hometown leader.
Tony Smith, 42, will start as a super-
intendent on July 1. He has worked in
San Francisco and Emeryville.
On May 13 the Oakland school board
voted unanimously to hire Smith.
“I am honored and humbled by
the opportunity that the Board, and by
extension, the people of Oakland, have
presented me,” said Smith. “Public
schools are a sacred trust tasked with
developing the most precious asset a
city has to offer – its children.”
Smith, an Oakland resident, has
worked as a deputy superintendent
in the San Francisco Unified School
District since 2007. Before that, he was
superintendent of the Emery Unified
School District.
Many people were excited that Oak-
land again has a superintendent.
"I'm very hopeful that a superinten-
dent will give us the focus to be able to
do better," said Architecture Academy
Principal Daniel Hurst.
Even though Hurst had never heard
of Smith before, he said he hopes Smith
gives Oakland students what they de-
serve, and hopes Smith understands the
importance of supporting teacher and
student interaction.
It's not just local officials who are
hopeful that Smith can help Oakland.
"Tony Smith is the perfect person at
the perfect time to head the Oakland
Unified School District," said state
schools chief Jack O'Connell. "I have
deep respect for his commitment to pro-
vide education excellence to students."
OUSD has not had a local leader
since 2003 when the state took it over
because of a $100 million debt. In the
years that Smith ran Emeryville schools,
he was able to bring them back from
OUSD names new superintendent
Arielle Andrade
College Preparatory & Architecture Academy
Brandon Sneed
Media Academy
I
t's a typical Tuesday morn-
ing, and Arik Rosenthal
shows up for his usual gig,
feeding and cleaning up
after lemurs at the Oakland
Zoo.
However, there's more than a
job to this job — working at the
zoo is part of Rosenthal's senior
project, one of many unique ideas
being pursued by graduating se-
niors at MetWest High School.
Bamboo and palm fronds are
the main materials that Rosenthal
uses to make shade structures for
the lemurs. He got the idea for
the structures after he noticed that
lemurs were running and hiding
from birds that would fly over
their habitat.
Unfortunately that meant visi-
tors weren't able to see the lemurs
either. But that's changed.
"The shade structures are cur-
rently working," said Rosenthal.
"Lemurs are using (them) to eat
their food, and then they relax
under (the) structures."
From zoo critters to cool fashion:
Senior projects break ground, develop talents
School board hires Tony Smith
in unanimous vote, fills position
after six years of state control
Staffers, students mull Assembly bill
to make marijuana legal, raise cash
for state budget, including schools
Can arts school run without a secretary, a counselor or an art teacher?
Ronald Johnson
Media Academy
See PROJECTS page 2
Staff, students say district
not giving school resources
to help students succeed
THE HIGH COST
OF QUINCEAÑERAS
Ellissia Hill
MetWest High School
COME HERE, LIL' LEMUR Arik Rosenthal feeding a lemur at Oakland Zoo, where
he interns on Tuesdays and Thursdays. For his senior thesis project, he built a shade
structure — out of bamboo and fronds — for lemurs to be protected from their prey.
TONY SMITH will assume the job of
superintendent on July 1.
Robeson, Yee said he could not
answer.
In an interview this week, Prin-
cipal Betsye Steele said she will
do the best with what she has been
given by the district.
"It's time to see how we can
move forward," she said. "Time to
get our students learning and our
teachers teaching in spite of our
challenges.
Student Sheila Blandon feels
frustrated."Paul Robe has a lot of
good qualities and if we had sup-
port from the district, we could be
a lot better," she said.
photo courtesy of OUSD
photo courtesy of the Oakland Zoo
– page 5– page 4
photo by Ronald Johnson / Media Academy
LOST ART Steve Bronson and
student Jose Casillas designed
this portrait of Barack Obama.
Bronson's art position at Paul
Robeson has been eliminated.
Paul Robeson faculty, students
and parents are not happy that the
district has decided to phase out the
school.
But they're even more upset that
the district has left them with what
they say are inadequate resources
to run the school properly for the
students and staff who choose to re-
main at the school in the final three
years of existence.
The school board voted to shut
down Paul Robeson School of
Visual and Performing Arts on Dec.
17, citing falling enrollment and
poor academic performance.
Since the vote, staff and stu-
dents at Paul Robeson have been
trying to overturn the decision
and get more resources for the
school.
However, funding for next year
looks bleak to them.
Because the district has slashed
Paul Robeson's budget by 45
percent next year, the school will
operate without a secretary, a full-
time counselor or a case manager.
The district is projecting that
Robeson will be just half the size
it is now. It has about 300 stu-
dents.
Longtime art teacher Steve
Bronson no longer has a position
at the school and will transfer.
Instead, the school will offer one
period of videography and one
period of photography.
In a meeting held May 19,
teachers, students and parents
invited board members Noel Gallo
and Gary Yee to talk to them about
the funding challenges.
Gallo could not make it, but
Yee did show up.
"We don't believe that we
have the resources to make Paul
Robeson a true visual and per-
forming arts school," said Yee.
"There are not enough students
that go to this school to fund the
programs."
When one person at the meet-
ing asked what other options
were there besides just closing
"We don't believe that we have the
resources to make Paul Robeson (High
School) a true visual and performing arts
school. – Gary Yee, school board member
similar problems with the state.
In 1992, Smith earned his bachelors
degree in English from University of
California, Berkeley, where he was the
captain of the football team. He later
went on to receive his masters and
doctorate degrees from Cal's Graduate
School of Education.
See MARIJUANA page 2
LEAVING AFRICA,
LOOKING BACK
OAKLAND IS
HOT FOR CHICO
– page 7
Oaktown Teen TimesOaktown Teen Times
Oakland's Teen Newspaper
December 2009 Volume 3, Issue 2News & Views of Teens in Oakland, California
Two students
fatally shot in
16-day span
Students and staff all over the
Oakland Unified School District are
sympathetic towards the victim of
a gruesome gang rape in Richmond
and outraged by those who commit-
ted the crime.
The rape took place on Oct. 29
when a Richmond High School girl
left her homecoming dance. She was
sexually assaulted by a group of al-
leged gang members in a poorly lit
area of the campus.
“It wasn’t right because she was a
[16]-year-old girl. No one deserves
to get raped at their homecoming
dance,” said Mykolay McGowan, a
Media Academy sophomore.
Many thought the rape was dis-
gusting and unacceptable.
“It was absolutely horrible,” said
Oakland students horrified by gang rape
Media Academy
Teens warm up laborers' days
Students serving breakfast
add jacket, sweater giveaway
after seeing 'jornalero' shivering
Many also outraged by those
who watched the rape and
did nothing to stop or report it
Family, friends, teachers mourn
Oakland High's Phillip Wright
and Antonio Nunez, Jr. of
Castlemont's Leadership Prep
See MURDERS page 2
Superintendent recommends closing BEST, Robeson in June 2010
The hallways were already
drab and posterless; most of the
lockers were shut; and now it
seems the final bell is ringing
for BEST, one of two small high
schools located at the McCly-
monds Educational Complex.
The school district staff
informed parents, students and
teachers at a Dec. 3 meeting that
it plans to close down BEST
High School a year earlier
than originally scheduled. The
school board is also likely to
vote to close Robeson School
of Visual & Performing Arts
at Fremont Federation and
Explore Middle School.
“It’s not right,” said Amber
Malone, a junior at BEST.
“They’re closing down our
school before we graduate.”
With almost 70 juniors
and seniors still attending
BEST, most were shocked or
sad, some were hopeful. They
thought it was unfair to keep
BEST open because of a lack
of funds as well as a waste of
resources.
“There is no school if
there are no students,” Curtis
Mackey, president of the Mc-
Clymonds High School Alumni
Association, told journalists.
Teachers at both Robeson
and BEST are concerned about
the consequences of the clo-
sures on students.
“Students are saddened and
angry by the decision to close
down the school especially be-
cause they feel that they didn't
have a voice in the decision
that ultimately affects them,"
Kristen Eschner, an all-subject
teacher at BEST.
For some BEST and EX-
CEL students, the decision of
the district staff is still unclear.
Where will the BEST students
be transferred? What will be
the name of the lone remaining
school: EXCEL or McCly-
monds?
“They should just make it
back to McClymonds because
all this EXCEL and BEST talk
is confusing to a lot of people,”
said Amber Hill, an Excel
junior.
About 30 students will have
See RICHMOND page 2
Students, parents, staff
say they were left out of
decision on early closing
READERS
CHOOSE
SESAME FAVES
– page 8
WHO'S
YOUR OAL
RIVAL?
– page 6– page 5
Robin Glover, the Mandela High
School principal. “My heart sank to
think kids could do that to another
kid. It appalls me.”
Others worried about the security
of their loved ones.
“What happened to the…Rich-
mond [victim] is the worst thing that
[could] happen to a girl,” said Alicia
Bautista, an EXCEL High School
junior. “I have eight nieces…myself.
I wouldn’t like to think about that
happening to any of [them].”
There were many witnesses during
the two-hour assault, but none took
action on reporting the crime to the
police. It wasn’t until someone found
the girl unconscious and unclothed
that authorities were notified.
When asked if the witnesses
should be punished as well, Omar
Franco, an Upward Bound adviser at
Fremont Federation, said, “Definite-
ly. If you witness something that’s
unfair or a crime, you should report
it to somebody. [The people who
A CALL FOR
NEW PHONE
POLICY
M
aria Fragoso, a student at Me-
dia Academy, woke up at 5 a.m.
on Monday and headed to San
Leandro and High streets in freez-
ing weather to offer day laborers
donuts, arroz con leche, coffee and respect.
Fragoso, who joins a dozen other teens from
"It was absolutely
horrible. My heart
sank to think kids
could do that to
another kid. It
appalls me."
– Robin Glover,
Principal, Mandela High
See LABORERS page 4
to find another school to attend
and seven teachers will have to
find new jobs.
For the past few years, stu-
dents and teachers have fought
against the district's decision to
close down BEST, but their ef-
forts were shattered after hear-
ing the district's final decision
to close down another school
in a low-income community of
color.
“I am glad to hear that the
meeting on the closure of
BEST was 'chaotic,' because it
See CLOSURE page
PAMELA TAPIA
EXCEL High
JOSE ALVARENGA & FUEY SAECHAO
Media Academy
witnessed the rape] could have done
something.”
Others expressed Franco’s senti-
ment.
“The men [who] did that to the
young girls are low lifes,” said Am-
ber Hill, an EXCEL junior. “There is
no explanation for what they did to
her.”
JACK MEJIA & JAZMIN GARCIA
across Oakland each Monday, doesn't get paid for
what she does but enjoys helping people -- "people
who could be my family members."
"They're sometimes abused, beaten up, not paid
and ignored by the government. It could probably be
me if I didn't finish school," said Fragoso, 14.
On Monday, about a dozen workers gathered
around a tent set up by the students, most opting for
hot arroz con leche (rice with milk) and a pastry.
"They (the teens) are showing us that we haven't
been forgotten," said Estanilao, a 44-year-old day
laborer from Guatemala.
BREAKFAST CLUB Italya Barron of Mandela Academy, Norma Vasquez of Paul Robeson High and Kimberly Guzman
of Mandela Academy serve arroz con leche and pastries to a day laborer on Dec. 7. It was about 32 degrees.
Students shed tears, administrators
planned memorials and teachers recalled
moments with two students who were
shot and killed in Oakland within 16
days of each other.
Antonio Nunez, Jr., was shot and
killed on Dec. 4 as he sat in a car outside
Castlemont High School. Nunez was
a student at Castlemont's Leadership
Preparatory High School.
Nunez' brother, 15, was shot in the
hip but survived. According to press
reports, the boys' 39-year-old uncle also
was shot outside their home on Sunny-
side Street.
Miguel Santiago, 15, a sophomore
at Castlemont's Business and Technol-
ogy School, said he had known Nunez,
whose nickname was Chato, since the
third grade.
"He wanted to be a Marine, just like
his older brother and older sister," San-
tiago said. "Chato had dreams, just like
the rest of us."
A memorial in the hallway outside the
main office at Leadership includes pho-
tos of a smiling Nunez wearing a hat,
along with letters and notes to family.
"He is in a far better place than this
cruel and nasty world," one letter says.
"He deserves to be in heaven. He needs
to be away from this gang s--t."
As of press time, no one had been
charged with Nunez' murder. "Some
(students) say it was mistaken identity.
Some say it was gang-related," said a
female Castlemont student, who asked
not to be identified.
Meanwhile, Oakland High School is
planning a moment of silence for Phil-
lip Wright, Jr., a junior known for his
enthusiastic personality, his reputation
as a jokester, and his fascination with
Rubik’s Cube.
On Nov. 19, Wright was shot and
killed in his East Oakland home, in what
the Oakland Police Department called a
case of mistaken identity. OPD Officer
Jeff Thomason said police are engaged
in an “ongoing investigation, following
up on witnesses and suspects.”
According to Principal Alicia Rome-
ro, the school will hold a moment of
Oakland High
ONISHA BRADLEY, THAO TRAN & ROSEY URIBE
DeVONNA ATKINS & AMERIAH HAYES
Castlemont Business and Information Technology School
photo by Jose Alvarenga / Media Academy
Oaktown Teen TimesOaktown Teen Times
Oakland's Teen Newspaper
February 2010 Volume 3, Issue 3News & Views of Teens in Oakland, California
Oakland seeks
injunction on
northside gang
If you are on a high school or
middle school campus in the Oak-
land Unified School District, you are
being watched.
That's because the district has
been putting 750 new video cameras
at 25 middle and high schools across
the city, under a $3 million security
upgrade program.
You will be watched by people on
your campus, the police and people
at the downtown district offices. You
might even be watched on computer
monitors at district officials' homes.
The U.S. Department of Justice
gave $1.5 million for the cameras
and the district is using moderniza-
tion funds for the rest, according to
news reports.
The idea for the district to put
District adds 750 surveillance cameras
Media Academy
Dangerous crossing gets light
Traffic project fast tracked after
Frick Middle School student killed in
hit-and-run at 64th Ave. & Foothill
Security measure praised
by many; some feel it could
violate student privacy
Gang members would be
banned from many activities in
100 blocks near Telegraph Ave.
Old school discipline takes back seat
It was a “bad look" that
began it.
Two girls, both freshmen,
gossiped about each other and
then one day in class, it blew
up. They fought — “a real al-
tercation in class,” says Donta
Jackson, a freshman at EXCEL
High School.
In another school, they
might have been sent to the
principal's office, landed in
youth court, or even been
suspended. Instead, at EXCEL,
they agreed to a new program
called “Restorative Justice.”
For Jackson, it was an oc-
casion to try out skills that
he learned previously at Cole
Middle School, where Restor-
ative Justice was launched in
the Oakland School District in
2006.
“First you have to find out
how, when, and why the con-
flict started” said Jackson, who
went through intensive training
at Cole as a “keeper of space
See CAMERAS page 2
EXCEL students able to
avoid suspensions through
restorative justice system
TWEETING,
TEXTING OUR
LIVES AWAY?
– page 6
'BONES'
TRAGIC,
HONEST
– page 5– page 8
more cameras on campus is to reduce
vandalism and other crimes. These
cameras are also on people who
might be doing harm to you or to
your personal belongings.
Fremont Federation of High
Schools is one of the campuses get-
ting new cameras; about 17 cameras
will be added. These will be added
to 32 working cameras already on
campus, according to School Safety
Officer Tiffany Couch, who said she
is very happy to have more electronic
eyes.
“It was a big request of mine,” she
said.
The supervisor of Fremont Fed-
eration's school safety officers, Al
Rhodes, agreed with Couch. When
asked if the cameras were a good
idea, he answered: “Yes, yes, yes!”
Couch said there are six officers
on campus and the cameras will be
“more eyes.”
One concern that school safety
officers have however, is that the dis-
ON BEING LATINA
IN A MOSTLY
BLACK SCHOOL
S
tudents and teachers in East Oakland are
breathing a sigh of relief at news that
City Council has approved a new stop-
light for a dangerous intersection where
an 11-year-old Frick Elementary student
was killed in a hit-and-run collision in October.
Councilwoman Desley Brooks said that she was
able to secure the funding for the stoplight, to be
installed at 64th Avenue and Foothill Boulevard. In a
"It's not an
invasion of
privacy. In school,
you do not expect
to have privacy."
– Emiliano Sanchez
Assistant Principal
Architecture Academy
SEE STOPLIGHT page 3
PAMELA TAPIA
EXCEL High
CAROLINA BURCIAGA & STEPHANIE GONZALEZ
Unity High School
trict may use the cameras to justify
cutting its staff.
“Cameras can alert us to the
problems, but they can't respond to
them,” said Rhodes.
Although, there will be more cam-
eras installed in public areas, there
will not be any cameras placed in
bathrooms, classrooms or offices.
FUEY SAECHAO
January email, Brooks said that she expects the stop-
light to be installed “within the next six months.”
Despite the news, the new stoplight won’t erase
the sadness many still feel about the death of Alana
Williams on Oct. 16.
It was an ordinary morning for many students in
Oakland: Wake up, get ready and head out to school.
But for many Frick Middle School students, life
changed forever as they witnessed the tragic death of
a classmate.
The accident happened at 8:08 a.m., when Wil-
liams was arriving at Frick, where she was in sixth
grade. Stewart was crossing the intersection of
Foothill Boulevard and 64th Avenue, when a dark-
SAVE THE CHILDREN Despite new safety measures, crossing guard Brian Taylor says speeding cars are still putting
students at risk at an intersection where an 11-year-old Oakland student was struck and killed in October.
Oakland will throw a new weapon at
members of one of its most notorious
gangs — an injunction to stop them
from engaging in gang activity in a 100-
block “safety zone.”
City Attorney John Russo filed a law-
suit for the injunction last week against
the North Side Oakland Gang, which
police blame for seven homicides in
2008 and another seven in 2009, includ-
ing the murder of Oakland Technical
High School student Desiree Davis in
September.
“This gang has terrorized our commu-
nity, intimidated witnesses and recruited
children to their criminal enterprise,”
Russo wrote in a press release. “They
are part of a malevolent force that has
crippled our city for decades and contin-
ues to hold Oakland back today.”
If granted by a judge, the injunc-
tion will declare North Side Oakland a
public nuisance and prohibit certain ac-
tivities within the safety zone — about
100 blocks between I/580, Emeryville,
Berkeley, and Telegraph Avenue, ac-
cording to the press release.
Oakland Tech is in the zone.
Under the requested injunction, 19
identified members of the gang would
no longer be able to associate with each
other in the zone. They also will be un-
able to possess guns or other dangerous
weapons or tools for graffiti or vandal-
ism.
The injunction would also ban them
from recruiting new members in the
zone, trespassing and intimidating wit-
nesses. They would have to follow all
laws, including those involving curfews
and drugs.
If they violate any part of the injunc-
tion, they would face a $1,000 fine and
up to six months in jail.
Some students at Fremont Federa-
tion of High Schools who heard of the
injunction were skeptical that it would
do much good.
“If they focus on one gang, it will
work, but how are they going to stop all
the other gangs?” asked Media Academy
junior Brittany Jackson.
However, Miguel De Luna, an Oak-
land police officer assigned to Fremont
Federation, thinks differently.
“It will help the gang violence,” he
said. “I don’t think it will stop every-
thing, but it will slow it down.”
Media Academy
CAROLYN SAEPHAN
photo by Julie Ortega / Unity High
See JUSTICE page 3
in a Peacemaking Circle,” the
person who runs the process.
That day, the two girls at
EXCEL gathered in a "con-
flict circle” with classmates.
They agreed to guidelines
and values: truth, honesty,
compassion, respect, and
speaking from the heart. They
used “a talking piece,” in this
case “a triangular necklace
that makes a lot of noise.”
The person holding the piece
was the only one allowed to
EXCEL debaters
to represent Bay
in Empire State
DAVID McNEAL
See DEBATE page 7
GREAT DEBATERS Daemiion
Yaphet and Tanesha Walker
prepare their arguments.
Two EXCEL High School
students — Tanesha Walker
and Daemiion Yaphet —
have qualified to participate
in the Chase National Tour-
nament in New York City
from April 23 to April 25.
EXCEL High
photo by Kendra Johnson / Cal Prep
Examples of my work in community journalism. Print remains popular in high-poverty schools mainly because Internet and computer penetration is an equity issue and also because print
newspapers tend to be more popular among English language learners. But increasingly even poor students have cellphones, and Twitter is popular especially among African American
students. Both mobile reporting and social media are exploding even in schools that can’t afford computer labs. Mobile phones also get around district firewalls that prevent students from
seeing videos they’ve produced, or even Googling NASA photos.

5. an invitation ... to Islamabad
An invitation from the Roots International School in Islamabad, for their annual honor roll ceremony.

6. Students at International Studies Learning
Center (LAUSD), South Gate, Calif.
a visit to a “global”
inner-city school
Photos from a visit to the International Studies Learning Center in South Gate, a public school with a global mission. Their student newspaper and website
are named The International Post, a reflection of the school’s diversity.

7. Above: March 2014 signup sheet by journalism class at International Studies Learning Center. Top
right: Classrooms hint at the subjects taught there, for example, English literature. Middle: Students
during passing period. Many are first in family to attend a U.S. high school. Bottom right: A school
administrator and campus police officer lead a student away in handcuffs; the stakes for students at
this one-year-old public school in a gritty part of south Los Angeles are very high.
It’s not hard to find global connections in inner-city schools, though students may or may not have a chance to actually demonstrate their knowledge of
different countries and cultures. There is cultural capital here that could be translated into more relevant curricula, journalistic writings that promote
critical thinking, and better educational outcomes.

8. Visit to United Nations International School in Ha Noi, Vietnam
April 2012
A visit to the United Nations International School in Ha Noi, Vietnam. My co-director for Newsroom by the Bay, Paul Kandell of Palo Alto High School, and I
helped UNIS launch their first student publication, The Flame.

9. Diversity in newsrooms
Full report is available here
This 2005 Knight report on diversity in newsrooms shed light on a problem we still haven’t solved — how can newsrooms better reflect and respond to
society as a whole?

10. Diversity in classrooms
Source: California Department of Education, Castlemont High School
2012-13 School Accountability Report Card
Public school classrooms often do reflect our society’s diversity.

11. click here for the report
The annual report in February. Interestingly, the four students I’ve gotten to know at Oakland International School are from countries far down on the list:
Yasser, from Yemen (167), Tatiana, from the Congo (151), Omar, from Colombia (126) and Xinje Li, from China (175). The U.S. (46) dropped 13 spaces,
behind Romania (45) and Finland (1).

12. why aren’t these kids
in the pipeline?
Tati
Yasser
Xinyi
(aka Candace)
Sebastian
(previously Omar)

13. Working upstream
When does
cancer
begin?
Where does
diabetes start?
How do you create
diversity?
Where does cancer
start?
When does diabetes
begin?
How early can you begin
working on newsroom diversity?
Why not in the classroom?
As a health reporter, I learned to ask, “where does illness begin?” What if we took the same upstream approach to diversity in the media?

14. break down borders — find tomorrow’s voices
use digital platforms to create a virtual newsroom
let them be makers — a global news wire by, for
and about teens
seize the Common Core moment
“only connect”
—diversify tomorrow’s newsrooms
The writer E.M. Forster once wrote, it’s the goal of humans all over the world to “only connect.” What if we did that, in a way that could nurture young
voices and develop them into the journalists of tomorrow?

15. Global Student Square
The student-led website for my Knight project, launched in January 2015.

16. Our first News Challenge, examining and exploring the stories that millennials would like to see/read about Africa.

17. News Challenge questions by students at Oakland International High School
February 2015

18. "What is the depiction of beauty in Africa?"
A video by a student at Eastside College Preparatory School in East Palo Alto, California, which makes a great connection between our perceptions of
beauty in Africa and African America.

19. Our virtual newsroom
How we pitch, submit and edit stories. The comment field at right shows students collaborating from the San Francisco Bay Area; Stockton, California;
Washington, D.C.; New York; and Seoul, South Korea.

20. global student square
News
Features
Stanford students
urge “slow down for
Michael Brown” — Cal
students don’t care
—by Simon Greenhill
What are teens really
up to on social media?
Editor Casey Miller
investigates
InDepth
Islam in America —
Being modern and Muslim
GSS reporter Shahnoor Jafri
interviews teens at a mosque in
Saratoga, California
Top Stories Most ReadData
Mobile app (under development)
We are developing a mobile-first curriculum and a mobile app that will put Global Student Square in the palm of a student’s hand.

21. The BBC School Report
“Facebook boss
responds to
criticism*”
*rejects “Junior
Facebook” (a good idea)
In looking for best practices, I found the BBC School Report, which takes place each March. More than 1,000 schools take part and the headlines/stories
are well-worth reading.

22. • More than 1,000 school
participating in 2013
• “Iraq 10 Years On”
• “Turning 13 in 2013”
• “I’d Be P.M. If I Had Support” —
Boris Johnson
• “exhilarating” “awesome”
“adrenalin” “journalistic”

23. CNN Student News
• by adults about adults, for students
• no students on air, no student products
• “Worldwide Wednesday” FB post on March 12
got just 149 replies, many from U.S.
• “I enjoy every show published on CNNSN. Your
efforts and qualities are highly appreciated, too.
We students from all over the world always think
of you and your site as a efficient information
and knowledge deliverer. Thank you so much for
paying due care and attention to us.” Nhi Huỳnh
Ngọc Phúc, Le Quy Don Specialized High
School, Quy Nhon, central Vietnam
Compare the BBC to CNN. As both initiatives show, teens worldwide are interested in the news, but the BBC’s School Report Day gives teens an opportunity
to be news creators, not just consumers.

24. Why ‘delivering’ makes me nervous
Edgar Dale’s famous 1940 “cone” turned education on its head by emphasizing active learning over passive instruction. While the underlying data came under fire, later research on student
engagement shows that students indeed learn more by doing. This correlates with Linda Darling Hammond’s definition of deep understanding, in which students: 1) use higher-order
cognitive functions, 2) apply learning experience in meaningful contexts, and 3) build upon prior learning but push towards more disciplined understandings.

26. Why Knight?
So, at this point, perhaps you’re thinking: Cool idea, maybe. But why Knight?

27. “Oxygen is vital to
brain growth and
healing.”
—National
Association
for Child
Development
To breathe ...
Disruption is good. So is stepping away from deadlines (for a little while).

28. to learn ... education, poli sci, information theory,
entrepreneurship, creative writing/journalism
Linda Darling-Hammond, Abbas Milani, Roy Pea, and Adam Johnson all are at Stanford and model the kind of inquiries into equity, Middle Eastern politics,
information systems and storytelling that I want to undertake.

29. ... and to be
resilient —
to leap
again
“Resilient” comes from the Latin “re” (to do again) and “saliere” (to leap).

30. what’s the right way for
information to flow?
top down? bottom up?
where’s the center?
should we even
have a center?who does what?
how can we all
stay safe?
what’s realistic? what
can I really achieve?
what are my metrics? how
do I know when it’s
working?
One year, lots of questions

31. Who or what are the natural partners,
publishers and audience for global youth
media?
What should we put into a young global
journalist’s backpack?
How can we keep young journalists safe?
How might we define global citizenship?

32. Closing thoughts: “As long as there is a camera,
the revolution will continue”
Fareed Zakaria says there are “two big trends” that won’t go away — youth and technology. Young people like Ahmad from “The Square” are the future. We
need to move more rapidly to make them news providers with mobile technology, social media, new forms of storytelling.

33. “You are a child, and it is your right to speak”*
*Ziauddin Yousafzai, high school principal
and father of Malala
Malala came to the world’s attention at the age of 11, writing for the BBC’s Urdu desk about life under the Taliban. Her “diary” (dictated to a BBC reporter
by phone and using the pseudonym ‘Gul Makai’) alerted the West to the Taliban’s repression of girls’ education. Malala recently won the Nobel Prize for
Peace.

34. Beatrice Motamedi
beatrice@globalstudentsquare.org
bymotamedi@gmail.com
510-282-7379

35. fin