The Rivers Edge - May 2021

THE RIVERS EDGE Vol. LI, Number 4

The Rivers School, Weston, MA

May 7, 2021

Asian, Pacific Islander community reacts to rise in US hate crimes

BY AMANDA GARY ’22 ASSISTANT EDITOR

The Prince remodel is scheduled to begin on May 17th, the first day of school after the class of 2021’s final day on campus, and it should be fully renovated by the end of August, just in time for the new school year to start.

The refinished Prince will house three classrooms—two of which will be 50% larger than existing spaces - two breakout rooms, a gathering space for students and faculty, and new Middle School faculty offices.

The entire building will be furnished and decorated to match the Revers Center, and just like six of the classrooms in “the Continued on page 3

The numbers, by any standard, are staggering.

From March 2020 to February 2021, 3,795 anti-Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) hate crimes were reported. However, the organization Stop AAPI Hate stated that this number represents “only a fraction of the number of hate incidents that actually occur, but it does show how vulnerable Asian Americans are to discrimination, and the types of discrimination they face.”

Stop AAPI Hate is a national coalition that formed last March and is aimed at addressing the rise in anti-Asian discrimination since the Coronavirus pandemic.

The organization was created for self-reporting anti-AAPI hate crimes as a way to capture the increasing hate crimes against the AAPI community. Despite the efforts of the organization, anti-AAPI hate crimes remain undercounted.

Stop AAPI Hate released a national report last month that analyzed the hate crimes reported to the organization. The report conveyed that hate crimes were targeted at AAPI women as 68% of respondents were women, and women reported 2.3 times more than men. It also highlighted that 68% of the hate crimes were verbal harassment, 20.5% were

processes.”

As with every other aspect of life that changed due to the pandemic, COVID-19 restrictions

changed the application process to independent high schools for both prospective students and the schools themselves. Gone were the days of in-person tours and interviews or large events showcasing programs and facilities that Rivers has relied on for years to showcase the school.

The admissions office knew these former ways to attract students would no longer be possible, so they had to get creative.

“Everything we did had to be virtual. We developed the virtual campus visit process, including virtual tours with Red Key tour guides and zoom interviews, a series of webinars to replace our

Spring Fever!

Warm weatherand the Fanzone are back at Rivers, with Kendall Diamond ’21 leading the way! (Richlin)

Construction projects to begin in May with gutting of Prince Bldg.

BY MEREDITH SHAH ’21 EDITOR

Nearly two years after placing finishing touches on the brand new Davis and Baker turf fields and one year after opening the Revers Center for Science and Visual Arts, Rivers is embarking on several brand new construction projects.

After the Revers Center opened in January 2020, it left several existing spaces on campus empty. Buildings like the Lewis Math and Science Center and parts of Haynes Hall went dark and fell into disuse right as the coronavirus pandemic gained

speed in the United States and shut Rivers down.

Since Rivers reopened in September 2020, Middle School classes and departments have taken advantage of the extra space to spread out from their existing domain in Prince and Haffenreffer. The coming renovations to these spaces and others will take place over the next 18 months and will double the amount of space currently available to the Middle School.

During this coming summer, the first renovations will be to the Prince Building and lower Carlin (known colloquially as the library basement).

deliberate avoidance, 11% were physical assault, and 8.5% were civil rights violations. Reports of incidents came from all 50 states.

“Among my friends, family, and students of Asian descent, there is a lot of sadness, anger, and anxiety in the face of AAPI hate,” said Upper School science teacher Wen Sailer. “The elderly, who in Asian cultures are respected and honored, are being assaulted. People who look like us are being targeted.

Having grown up in NYC in the 80s, I am no stranger to overt racism, microaggressions, and sexism. However, this is the first time in my life that I purchased pepper spray. I am not a paranoid person, but when I am out in public and see a stranger making eye contact, I experience mild anxiety and wonder if the person resents me for my race and ethnicity.”

Many point to former President Donald Trump and other government officials whose inflammatory rhetoric may have played a role in the spike of anti-AAPI hate crimes at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic through the use of phrases such as “Kung Flu” and the “China virus.” The effects of that rhetoric impact the AAPI community today as prominent public figures normalized hate Continued on page 7

Applications jump 47% during record admissions year

BY MEREDITH SHAH ’21 EDITOR AND CHARLIE FOLEY ’22

Applying to private schools in the Boston area has always been a competitive process, but for Rivers this year - despite the pandemic or perhaps because of it - applications to the school soared 47%, making it the most competitive year in the school’s 116 year history.

The school’s strong reputation in the private school marketplace as well as the word of mouth about how it handled educating its students during the pandemic no doubt fueled the record-set-

I N S I D E

dd

NEWS

Speakers share stories and insights during Holocaust Remembrance Day virtual assembly.

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ting year. Given COVID, however, this year’s admissions cycle was not without its challenges.

“As difficult as our year of COVID has been, the members of the admissions office really worked hard, creatively, and strategically to ensure that we were still able to deliver the Rivers message to prospective families,” said Gillian Lloyd, the Director of Admissions and Financial Aid at Rivers for the past 21 years.

“We developed and delivered as personalized an experience as possible given the constraints and succeeded in our overall goal of building our community through our evaluation and yield

FEATURES

Female professional sports teams and athletes are leading the charge for equal pay for all women.

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ARTS

Over 7 years and in nearly every drama production, Senior Hannah Long has become a bona fide theatrical star.

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SPORTS

Boys’ lacrosse captain Joey Kraft leads by example on and off the playing field.

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normal receptions and events, and other in-person programs, new videos and a virtual open house,” said Lloyd.

Essential to the typical Rivers admissions experience is the student-led tour. To replicate that experience, the office worked closely with the Red Key copresidents (seniors Jess Bargamian, Ciara King, and Jameson Mannix) to transform the tour organization. “We developed a student ambassador program to replace our in-person student tours and a much more involved parent program so that current parents could connect with proContinued on page 3

AROUND CAMPUS

Former classmates, coach remember Terrence Clarke and the time at Rivers during his freshman year.

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The Rivers Edge

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May 7, 2021

News

Survivor shares story during Holocaust Remembrance

BY BROOKE BRENNAN ’23 CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Hate is a universal word. Some forms stem from fear, and some stem from prejudice. Hate is everywhere, and it spreads like a disease that can only be stopped when people wake up to see it.

There are innumerable religious identities and faith systems that people identify with. Though it can be quite easy for people of differing religions to coexist, hate and prejudice can often get in the way. The religion of Judaism has been at the forefront of anti-religious sentiment and hate, or, antisemitism.

Antisemitism has always existed in the world that we live in.

There are different forms of it that have affected Jewish people all over the world. Through the persecution of the Jewish people in ancient times in Egypt, the second World War and Holocaust, and to today, antisemitism still exists and is prominent worldwide. No nation or community is immune to hateful actions and beliefs against Jews largely fueled by ignorance and subconscious microaggressions including our own here at Rivers Earlier this month, during the Holocaust Remembrence Day, the Rivers community was fortunate enough to be able to listen to Dr. Rachel Fish, the executive director of the Foundation to Combat Antisemitism, who aspoke to the school about antisemitism and its presence in the world today. Jack Trompetter, a Holocaust survior and current artist, also spoke and shared his miraculous story of

faith and survival during WWII. Though their words seemingly exposed the presence of antisemitism today that many at Rivers may have been oblivious to, many members of the Jewish community have lived with this hate their whole lives.

During medieval times, “[The Blood Libel], which was a trope used against Jews, suggesting that Jews would take children, Christian children, and use their blood for the purpose of performing holiday rituals,” said Dr. Rachel Fish.

Clearly, antisemitism and other hate towards Jews is not new and has existed for centuries. Many commonly misperceived the birth of antisemitism as beginnng during WWII, but hateful sentiment against Jews has been brewing since the religion’s inception.

“The Holocaust was not the first moment we see antisemitism, and it’s definetly not the last moment,” said Fish.

Backing the factual information Dr. Fish shared, Jack Trompetter shared his life’s story and his survival during the Holocaust. After being separated from his parents to ensure he survives and s ent to live with a family in the country, he was raised for years as the son of strangers who he came to love throughout the war.

“And you’re feeding your child, and your child is, you know, a week, a few days more than a week old, and you’re told by your husband, my father, ‘we’re going into hiding and you can’t take your child with you.’ Imagine that horrible situation?” he recollected.

He was separated from the people who loved him the most and was put into a foster family, but “as far as [he could] understand and comprehend, these [were his] parents.”

Though separated and fortunate to never have been in Nazi control or in concentration camps, the tyranny and fear the war induced was certainly not foreign to Trumpetter.

“I only had two experiences that I remember. One was… being rushed into a closet, sitting on a hobby horse and being told to be still. And another experience was a bombing in the area.”

His story inspired many viewers at Rivers and showed the harrowing reality of Jews during the Halocaust. Even after this horrific genocide which wiped out nearly 6 million Jews, the hateful sentiment that tore the world apart and devastated the lives of an entire religion still exists today.

Most recently, antisemitism is prominent in the Middle East in the continued battle for control of Israel between the Jews, Palestinians, and surrounding Arab nations. Though Israel has been the homeland of Jews for thousands of years and much of the region’s history originates there, Jews are still having to fight for their land and defend it. Despite that the US sides with Israel, many nations are against the Israeli cause and blame them for all the violence taking place in the land–– predominately in heavily contested regions of the land such as the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and the Golan Heights.

“A demonization of Israeli

Jack Trompetter, Dr. Rachel Fish, and history chair Andrea Diaz during the virtual assembly on Holocaust Remembrance Day. File photo.

Jews, of Israel, occurs from a itism has made national news durblood libel that falsely claims ing the raid of the capital where Jews are responsible for killing some white supremacists declared innocent Palestinians,” Dr. Fish that “6 Million Was Not Enough” said. on their shirts.

There was a spike of anti-SeWhile antisemitism may not metic attacks at the start of the be as prevelant at Rivers and our Israeli-Palestinian conflict, where region as other places, ignorance some blamed Jews as a whole and stereotypes are still promifor the violence that occured, and nent in locker room conversathe spike has continued to grow. tions, texts, or even in the shortest Jewish headstones are constantly of conversations between friends. defaced with swastikas, and there Many in the community who rehave been numerous shootings in main silent in the face of antisemiSynagogues, the Jewish place of tism do not mean to invalidate the worship, such as the devastating faith of their peers and teachers, 2018 Pittsburgh synoguge shoot- however, their words and silence ing that took the lives of 11 Jews cannot go unaddressed. including a Holocaust survivor.

Through hearing the words “The idea that Jews are still and stories of both Dr. Fish and controlling the media, influenc- Mr. Trompetter, members of the ing the government to a degree Rivers community were granted that suggests Jews are not loyal as the opportunity to reflect on how American citizens, but have loy- they treat their Jewish classmates, alty to another entity, and in this teachers, and friends, and possibly case usually Israel,” Fish said. how as a community, we can work Even in this past year, antisem- toward ending antisemitism.

Student feedback on new learning management system

BY SEBASTIAN CONNELLY ’22 STAFF WRITER

For the past few years prior to the 2020-2021 school year, Rivers has relied on Podium for communicating assignments to students among allowing teachers to provide other information to their students as well. This year, Rivers has made the shift away from Podium and is almost solely relying on Canvas, its new learning management system.

A learning management system, or LMS for short, in the context of a school, is a software application that allows students to receive assignments, grades, and other information from teachers online.

Canvas comes with a wide variety of features that Podium never had for both students and teachers, all of which are designed to improve the learning process - especially during remote online learning. One such example is Canvas’s Speed Grader which allows teachers to open a student’s submission directly on Canvas, annotate the document, leave a written comment, and assign a grade.

Overall, students have given good marks to Canvas, the new learning management system. (S. Connelly) Another benefit is the discus- Canvas certainly isn’t without its Canvas. sion boards where students and flaws. Students have expressed Diamond and Smith discussed teachers are allowed to comment various complaints about certain what they liked and improveand reply to each other on various aspects of Canvas throughout the ments they felt were necessary for topics. This feature was very use- academic year. In order to ad- Canvas with Fraser and Adams. ful for many classes, especially dress these concerns Leslie Fra- They had this discussion prior on asynchronous days, given that ser, Upper School Dean of Fac- to communicating their opinit provides students and teachers ulty, and John Adams, Director of ions with the rest of the faculty. the ability to respond to a prompt Academic Technology, met with During a professional day, Diaand anytime throughout the day. seniors Kendall Diamond and mond and Smith went over their Despite all of the plusses of Calvin Smith who shared more thoughts and opinions on Canvas Rivers switching LMS platforms, about the student experience with in a zoom webinar with the fac-

ulty in attendance.

To start, the two seniors discussed everything they appreciated about Canvas.

“I like the fact that everything is centralized, and you don’t have to go to other sources to get your homework and other materials,” said Smith.

It is clear that many students share a similar sentiment.

“I’ve really enjoyed the centralized nature of Canvas. I am grateful that all of my work can be submitted in the same place,” junior Sam Lyons remarked.

Diamond then described how she appreciates the organization that can be enabled due to Canvas: “On the home page [of a course] teachers can post everything that is going on for the next week, which really allows students to get organized and plan their week out. The to-do list is another useful feature that lets me see what I have due the next day, and I can check everything off when I’m finished with it.”

Sophomore Sadie Caroll conveyed a similar view: “I really like how there’s a to-do list to keep me on track with my work Continued on page 7

The Rivers Edge

May 7, 2021

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News

Next round of campus improvement projects to begin Continued from page 1

Rev,” all new Prince rooms will be fully equipped with video teleconferencing capabilities, both an incredible luxury and near requirement in a pandemic year.

The planned renovations have the Middle School students excited.

“When I came to tour, the Revers building stood out to me,” said Kayla Thugi ’25. “It was interesting to see the plant wall and the new modern style. I cannot wait to see Lewis and Prince renovated to fit that style.”

Also beginning in May will be renovations to Carlin. What is now a dilapidated basement floor with dark, outdated classrooms will become Rivers’ brand new tutoring center, equipped with a breakout room and faculty offices. Carlin construction should be completed by the end of July, leaving ample time for faculty to get situated in the new space before the school year begins.

When Prince construction wraps up in the early fall, the third building on the academic quad - the Lewis Math and Science Center -will also undergo renovations.

A rendering of the proposed new entrance to campus that would create a traffic cricle and more parking along the playing fields. File photo.

“The renovated space will have a large gathering area with views of Nonesuch Pond, three new science labs for the Middle School, a new IT office, renovated humanities classrooms, and a maker space,” said project manager Tom Bourdeau, the school’s Associate Director of Operations.

“Collaboration is a hallmark of the Rivers Middle School experience,” said Head of Middle School John Bower, “so I’m looking forward to the increased

square footage in classrooms, breakout rooms, faculty offices, and common areas, which will provide more space for that collaboration and generation of ideas to take place. Our academic program is intentionally designed with the needs of middle schoolers in mind - active engagement, hands-on, project-based learning, group work, interdisciplinary discovery - and it is critical that we have a facility that supports middle school pedagogy and

Continued from page 1 spective parents,” Lloyd said.

Thanks to its extensive resources and well thought out safety protocols, Rivers has been in-person for the entirety of the 2020-2021 school year, making it one of the only schools in Massachusetts to stay in-person full time. During the pandemic, in-person learning was and continues to be in high demand. Interviews were up 31%. Members of the admissions staff and other faculty and staff interviewed 856 candidates and their families, compared to 653 last year.

Shifting to an entirely virtual interview process meant members of the Admissions Office had to adjust to interviewing every applicant over Zoom. While not as personal as in-person meetings, members of the office said it had its benefits.

“Our office really prides itself with offering a very personalized experience for prospective students and their families. While I’d much rather have met and interviewed families in person, talking to them over Zoom was the next best thing,” said Assistant Director of Admissions Karin Narcisse. “An added benefit of interviewing over Zoom was that it helped us meet the needs of the increase by scheduling them in the evenings and even on weekends.”

This year, admissions processed 828 completed applications, a number that shattered last year’s record of 585 applications to the school. The large number of applications for roughly 109

spots in grades 6 through 11 led to a record low admission rate of only 26%. Moreover, with a high yield on accepted students, the Admissions Office reported fully meeting their enrollment numbers for the school by the April 10th deadline.

The rise in applications meant the admissions committee had their hands full as the number of prospective students far exceeded the spaces available in each entry grade. Once again the 9th grade pool was the largest with 401 applications for just 46 spots.

After decisions were released on March 10, Lloyd added, “we had so many virtual opportunities, creative video messages, personal outreach from teachers, coaches, current students and parents, as well as an in-person visit program on campus” to help prospective students and families get a feel for Rivers and what it has to offer.

Given that most of the students and families applying to Rivers were unable to visit campus, tour the facilities, or meet with teachers and current students prior to acceptances, the Admissions Office carefully developed in-person visit days in early April. The programs took place after school on four separate evenings and adhered to a strict safety protocol.

According to some survey responses received by the Admissions Office, the in-person program was critical in helping families get to know Rivers better and ultimately decide to enroll.

“For our family, it was the students who our daughter met (friendly, down to earth, outgoing, welcoming) that had a very positive impact on her,” one parent wrote in a survey response received by the Admissions Office. “She could see herself as being part of the community.”

Another respondent wrote: “The in-person self guided tour was original. It provided the opportunity for new students to interact along the way with other students and teachers. Other schools’ in-person tours limited your conversations to the tour guide only and didn’t foster random interaction. Well done

enables our teachers to bring our dynamic program to life.”

In regards to day-to-day operations of the school during this phase of construction, “there shouldn’t be too much impact,” said Bourdeau.

The 97 students in the Class of 2021 will have left campus for senior week events when construction starts, which “freed up classroom space to move people out of Prince and Carlin.”

“Those of us on campus can expect to see more workers on campus and some more parked vehicles, but those folks will be confined to the Prince building,” Bourdeau said.

After these renovations take place this year, 2022 will bring updates and new finishes to Upper Haynes Hall and Haffenreffer. Lower Haynes will undergo further changes in the fall of 2022 to complete what was started in preparation for the 2020-2021 school year, and the entire entryway to campus will be completely redesigned by the end of 2022, barring any unforeseen circumstances.

The plan for the new campus gateway “will provide visitors with a clearer sense of arriving on campus, improving existing

foot-traffic pathways while addressing continued parking and traffic-flow challenges,” according to the website for the Rivers Futuremakers campaign. The vision for the entryway includes a new parking lot overlooking the Davis and Baker fields, a circular pickup and dropoff lane, and two way traffic in and out of the main campus entrance—the days of sneaking the wrong way out of campus in the afternoons will be no more.

Rivers’ aptly named FutureMakers campaign, a $50 million capital campaign started in 2018, paved the way for these and other projects to become realities on campus. Since the campaign’s inception, Rivers has exceeded its initial goal by raising over $61 million, without which none of the updates and renovations would have even been possible.

The school is still seeking around $5 million to complete the campaign and secure finances for every project it wants to complete, but Head of School Ned Parsons is confident that “this community is capable of doing whatever it puts its mind to.”

RIVERS!” It’s not hard to see how our admissions process heavily influences the culture and appearance of the school; it dictates what the community will look like year after year after year.

“Our evaluation of student applicants has always reflected the goal of ensuring that we are building an exciting community of student scholars, citizens, athletes, musicians, artists, etc., who will both benefit from and contribute to this wonderful place that we all know of as Rivers,” said Lloyd.

Rivers’ steady increase in applications over the past five years

reflects the school’s excellent academic program, strong sense of community, new facilities and a myriad of other successful programs. That coupled with how the school has deftly handled school during a pandemic has no doubt raised the school’s popularity and selectivity.

“People are raving about Rivers right now,” wrote a parent of a newly enrolled student in a survey. “It is one of a few schools who did everything possible to get their students on campus and keep things as normal as possible during an extremely stressful time.”

Applications to the school soar during record-setting year

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The Rivers Edge

May 7, 2021

EDITORIAL

Savoring the final days Ahhh, what an incredible time of year. The weather is finally clearing up, and the sun is coming out. Homework and tests are beginning to fade as is the pressure to perform at an impossibly high level in everything to please college admissions offices. In other words–– I am a senior and it is spring. My classmates and I have been fortunate to be able to spend time together in person and truly relish our remaining days at Rivers. It seems like almost yesterday when we stepped foot on campus or the Upper School for the first time as freshmen, played in our first games in front of fans, and even stood in the former atrocity of a lunch line filled with senior privilege and sly maneuvers around the vision of SDon’s eagle-eye vision to cut to the front.

Much has changed since then, and as I relish these final few weeks of my high school career, I am filled with happiness and pride in looking back through everything I have done to be here today. I think back to studying for hours on end for a now seemingly trivial sophomore history test. Or the time my classmates and I played football on the indoor turf during our first homecoming. Or that freshman year art class where I met one of my best friends.

Senior spring is what I wish school could always be like. I am more alert and focused in class as I do not have to stress about studying for a test for hours on end or write the most flawless paper of my life. Though my effort may be slightly below par, I feel like for one of the first times I am learning for the sake of learning which is supposed to be the main purpose of school.

As learning is becoming more about actually understanding new things, I am also having the most fun ever with my classmates. Friend groups are intertwining in ways they never did in the past four years, and people are coming together, many of whom seldom even had a conversation with one another before this trimester. The walls of a mythical social hierarchy and barriers of friend groups are finally being broken and allowing bonds to be forged across all previous boundaries. It is truly incredible when the pressures of life and school miraculously disappear suddenly, and I know my classmates and I are only wishing this euphoric state came sooner. No doubt, a lot of this most certainly has to do with staring down the finality of our Rivers experience and trying to savor every moment, every experience before it all ends on May 29.

It feels like after over a year of hardship and isolation due to the pandemic, we are finally breaking free and being able to come together one last time–– and it is incredible. Most recently, almost everyone in our grade went to the beach together for our skip day. Stress free and able to have genuine uninterrupted fun.

Memories like these are what I will take from Rivers along with so many more. So as homework becomes optional and our arrival to classes shifts from late to concerningly late, I would like to congratulate my peers in the Class of 2021 and wish you all the best of luck in the future!

Congratulations to the new editors of The Rivers Edge: Hannah Lapides ’22 and Amanda Gary ’22 And the rest of next year’s staff: Associate Editors: Sophie DuBard ’22, Sam Lyons ’22, Abby Sikorski ’22, and Elena Zuvekas ’22.

Assistant Editors: Sebastian Connelly’22, Charlie Foley’22, Natalie Kloman’23, Dana Lowitt ’23, Ava Palazzolo ’23, Christina Gomez ’23, Abby Matsuyasu ’23.

Opinions & Editorials

Georgia law is attack on democracy

BY DANA LOWITT ’23 STAFF WRITER

For the first time since 1992, when Bill Clinton was elected, the state of Georgia voted to elect a Democratic president. The state also elected two Democrati senators, Jon Ossoff and Raphael G. Warnock. And, while this may seem a new age for Georgia, these election results did not come free of GOP pushback. On March 25, Georgia Republicans passed a sweeping voting rights bill that will restrict voting in a way that has not been seen for decades.

The bill aims to derail voters from more urban areas which are mainly populated by people of color. By ramping up absentee voter identification requirements and shortening the time that one has to opt for an absentee ballot, Georgia legislators hope to limit the number of Blue voters, many of whom come from diverse backgrounds. In the 2020 presidential election, 1.3 million Georgia residents sent in absentee ballots. Of those, 65% of voters were Democrats who voted for Biden. Voters will have much less time to request an absentee ballot so the number of mail in votes will be limited. In addition, the law also requires voter identification for those ballots in the form of a driver’s license. While this may seem to be a reasonable regulation, one has to take into account the geography of the state.

Democrats tend to live in urban

areas where the need for a car is almost non-existent; therefore, many city dwellers don’t have a driver’s license. Those who live in the rural areas are mainly Republicans who have a license to drive.

If Democrats are more likely to request absentee ballots, requiring a valid license in order to receive one will severely curb the Democratic votes. Of course, there is a form to fill out if a voter is lacking a valid ID, but the more strenuous process is likely to turn away voters, especially younger ones, that tend to vote Blue.

Moreover, drop boxes are being cut back and absentee forms are no longer being mailed out to every resident. Drop boxes allow voters to cast their votes early without having to send it through the mail. In the 2020 presidential election 94 drop boxes were spread out across the urban areas in Georgia. Now, only 23 remain.

The inability to turn in votes in the evening may prompt voters to send their votes in through the mail which has proven to be an unreliable source. Absentee ballots had originally been sent out to every resident in Georgia. This proved as an effective way to get people to vote and remind them that they have the ability to do so.

Now, the government is banning third parties and the government from sending out any of these ballots. Once again, the Georgian law is aiming to make it more difficult for Democratic voters to pass in their votes.

Finally, the new law makes it illegal to serve food or water to those waiting in line to vote; anyone who goes to the wrong polling place will find it nearly impossible to vote; and mobile voting vans are banned. Voting lines in urban areas of Georgia tend to be very long. The weather is often in the mid 80s and humid. Both of these factors can deter voters from casting a ballot. Provisions can make all the difference in a two-hour waiting period. By banning such refreshments, Georgia Republicans are essentially trying to stop Democratic voters from voting by making it more miserable to do so.

Finally, mobile voting vans have basically been removed. In the 2020 election, two roaming vans would go to churches, libraries, and other public spaces in order to allow people to vote. More than 11,200 voted through these vans with over 50% of those voting being Democratic. Georgia has banned this practice all together.

Although these regulations may not seem too disruptive on their own, when taken together, it is clear that they serve the purpose of restricting Democratic votes.

Georgia voted blue in the 2020 election, Republicans are doing all that they can to make sure that this never happens again. It is unclear how this law will turn out in the future, but the words in the bill are clear: Democrats will have a much harder time voting in the next election.

The Rivers Edge

Co-Editors Associate Editors

Assistant Editors

Faculty Advisor Copy Editing

Meredith Shah ’21 Max Meyerhardt ’21 Kendall Diamond ’21 Ellie McCarron ’21 Amanda Gary ’22 Hannah Lapides ’22 Sam Lyons ’22 Alex Stephens Lucy Kapples

Staff Writers: Sebastian Connelly ’22, Sophie DuBard ’22, Charlie Foley’22, Christina Gomez ’23,

Natalie Kloman ’23, Dana Lowitt ’23, Abby Matsuasu ’23, Ava Palazzolo ’23, Michael Pasko ’22, Abigail Sikorski ’22, Elena Zuvekas ’22

Contributing Writers: Brooke Brennan ’23, Jack Dosantos ’23, Teagan Jannis ’24, Mia Patel ’23, Cailyn Murphy ’23, Lexie Siegel ’23, Megan Sweatt ’24, Lucy Tonthat ’22

Photography: Meredith Shah, Max Meyerhardt, Adam Richins, Alex Stephens.

THE RIVERS EDGE is published by the students of The Rivers School. THE EDGE is an open forum for the news, events, ideas, issues and concerns of the student body. Letters and contributions from the entire Rivers community - students, faculty, staff, parents, and alumni - are welcomed and encouraged. Unsigned letters will not be published, but names will be withheld upon request. Please send letters to The Editors, THE RIVERS EDGE, The Rivers School, 333 Winter Street, Weston, MA 02493.

May 7, 2021

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The Rivers Edge

Opinion

Reflections on a year of COVID, social distance, & Zoom

BY LEXIE SIEGEL ’23 STAFF WRITER

In the last months of 2019, discussion in the United States shifted from political debate and California wildfires to a strange, foreign virus. Well, only partially; the political debates never truly subsided… but, anyways, back to the pandemic.

When the first case of COVID-19 in the US was confirmed on January 21, 2020, paranoia entered as an even deadlier disease.

Americans now had to worry about what could have “infected” both the pairs of jeans ordered from across the world and the ones shipped from only a few states away. By March 24, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker temporarily shut down all nonessential businesses and advised all residents to stay at home. For a while, all there was to do was buy even more clothing online, let the packages quarantine for three days outside, and proceed to let the clothing items quarantine in a drawer for additional days as normalcy was awaited.

It is now just over a year after the first wave of COVID and the one and only lockdown. It is safe to say that, although life is

nowhere near our old perceived normal, progress has been made.

Hand sanitizer and toilet paper have made their way back onto the shelves of all convenience stores, and, unlike 12 months ago, they do not come with a $50 resale price. Though aspects such as lockdowns make complete logical sense in hindsight, there is no justification for why so many Americans believed that the coronavirus would tremendously decrease the production of their toiletries.

With cleaning products back in stock, the release of a vaccine for the virus, and the decrease/downplaying of cases (you choose which to believe), there has been a clear onset of hope lately. Then again, it may just be the Boston weather soaring to high temperatures of 48 degrees Fahrenheit, with Bostonians switching from iced coffees to even more iced coffees, that seems to lift the general mood. Spring has truly sprung. However, as nearly 130 million or 39.5% of Americans have received at least their first vaccine dose, there is true positivity outside of Dunkin’s seasonal coffee flavors. With more vaccines rolled out each day, there is a concrete measure of im-

provement as the journey to herdimmunity is progressing along.

Better yet, as businesses and schools slowly shift from remote participation to in-person operation, many are now able to wear the copious amounts of clothing bought “just because” in quarantine last year.

In reflection, it is important to mention the little things that have changed since the virus arrived.

Myriad small adjustments in everyday life have made a large difference when combined into the juxtaposing terms of “pre” and “mid” pandemic life. Many can say that they have endured selfdiscovery and wellness journeys through copious amounts of alone time, and many others have created extensive lists of previously watched Netflix shows. Many represent the middle ground between the two extremes. Numerous individuals also have spent so much time on Zoom meetings and behind computer screens that they find themselves searching for a “Turn off Camera” button in real life, and they are forced to bear the pain of human interaction when they realize the button simply does not exist. If only we could do that on days where we feel that masks aren’t hiding

out color”...

Woman 1: That’s excessive.

When will it stop? I mean I have a white husband, so I’m obviously not racist, but these whites are asking for too much.

Woman 2: I’m not racist either. I mean, I majored in White Studies in college, so I’m basically an expert on their people. I’m so interested in their mysterious inter-white dynamics. Fascinating.

Woman 1: How about that bill that the White Caucus is trying to pass on the Senate floor for protections against “antiwhite” crimes?

Woman 2: It’ll never make it through; we’ve got the Senate stacked against any of that nonsense. I care about the white community, I really do, but I just don’t get the fuss. It isn’t about race, if you look at income levels, on average, whites are making just as much as we are, so how could there possibly be racism against them? I really doubt things are as bad as they make it out to be.

Woman 1: Everything was so much better for everyone when they just kept their heads down and did their part. Aren’t white men supposed to be submissive anyways? It is in their nature.

Woman 2: Agreed. And it’s not like I don’t support the white community, too. We buy from white-owned businesses as much as we can. Isn’t that enough? I had pan-European takeout last night. It was honestly…a little bland.

Woman 1: No, no, we’re not supposed to say “pan-European” anymore. It’s not PC. It’s easier to ask what we can say than what we can’t anymore. Everything has been ruined. We can’t watch our favorite movies and TV shows about whites or wear their traditional khakis or eat their food without being labeled “racist”?

Woman 2: I’m racist for watching a movie that actually has white characters? What about representation? Isn’t that what these so-called “activists” want so badly? Then, they also get mad when non-white actors play white roles.

Woman 1: What can be done?

There really aren’t enough white actors in Hollywood.

They should be encouraging their people to get involved rather than complaining about it.

Honestly, they complain about representation, then lack of representation, and then so-called “racist tropes.”

Woman 2: Well, white men are just so exotic. I mean, I don’t have a white fetish, but I can’t help that they’re my type.

And who can blame Hollywood for portraying them as they are?

Why should we be expected to not watch these movies?

They’re classics!

Woman 1: Exactly! Let’s just hope this White American “civil rights” movement is a blip in our rich history…

A typical conversation in year 2070

BY LUCY TONTHAT ’22 AND CELINA CHEN ’22 CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Let’s set the scene: It’s 2070, and Asian American women are the global and national majority, controlling the government and media, benefiting from the racial/gender wage gap, and culturally oppressing all whites.

This is a colloquial conversation between two Asian American women.

Woman 1: Have you heard about the recent protest by white students at Barnaby University, trying to get a tenured professor fired over a silly comment about how all white men are the same and don’t naturally make good leaders? Is that really worth upending her life for?

Woman 2: I know, it’s crazy.

We can’t say if her comment was even “racially motivated.”

White men blow EVERYTHING out of proportion. I mean, is she even wrong? When I go into Europetown on the weekends for brunch I swear I cannot tell the difference between them. What’s the difference between German and Irish?

They all have light hair and blue eyes with identical names like Joe and John, Pat and Pete. How can we be expected to tell them apart?

Woman 1: The professor was probably just having a bad day.

Woman 2: Everyone has bad days. Now, these “activists” are calling themselves “people with-

End scene.

enough of our fatigue or disinterest.

Additionally, while the wearing of a face-covering before last March would earn stares and laughter, public judgment now is reserved for those who go without face masks. And beyond the basic surgical masks, COVID fashion has paved the way for an industry based solely on both fashionable and functional masks. When conversations get uncomfortable, complementing one’s leopard-patterned, hot-pink mask from the nearby boutique is a new method of dialogue initiation. Simply put, conversation starters have completely shifted past any possible prediction. The response to complaining about a sore arm has gone from “Feel better!” to “Was it Pfizer, Moderna, or Johnson & Johnson?” Because dangerous media portrayal has displayed Pfizer as a far superior choice, this new prompt has the potential to spark debate in any setting. Intense disputes on which vaccination is truly the best may drive some to feel nostalgia towards the “Feel better!” days.

Besides the concrete adjustments within all that surrounds a COVID-19-centered lifestyle, a year of experiencing this pandemic has shifted values and ideologies for many. Gratitude is an extremely notable aspect, as in times of despair and misfortune all there is to do is find what there is to be grateful for. For those who share an extremely common distaste for Zoom meetings and have the privilege of learning or working in person, there is an extreme amount of gratitude to be felt. The joys of lunchtime conversations and walks through familiar hallways were once so easy to take for granted, as school seemed to be a mere obstacle and predecessor to the weekend to many. But if anything teaches you to appreciate engaging classes and tangible classrooms, it’s a global spread of infectious disease.

Besides the eight-hour work or school day, there is much more for which to show gratitude. Much of this gratitude can fall under the category of relationships, as the global side effects of a pandemic include isolation and a decline in

mental wellbeing, just as valid as the granted physical illnesses and hardships. Through virtual holiday gatherings and celebrations, we do not realize the privilege we once had with the trivial choice between attending family dinner at Grandma’s or faking a stomach ache. As (social) distance has made all hearts grow fonder, the post-pandemic future will certainly shorten the list of those to RSVP “No” to events like these.

So many months without our loved ones, especially those at higher risk for COVID, have only made us appreciate the times we have together more. We learn to cherish every gathering, every hug, and even every severely overcooked Thanksgiving turkey shared by a merry family. And of all everyone lost as a result of the virus, we cherish the blissful past and what has been shared with those who we are unable to create future memories with. As for the future, gratitude is sure to become a defining aspect of our mindsets in recollection of the exceptionally grueling past.

If given the opportunity to tell our past selves about the entirety of the past year, a celebratory cheer for a temporary pause on education would quite probably be the only reaction given.

As living beings, we know that the only true way to comprehend and completely empathize with this tumultuous period is to live through it. That is just what we are doing now. Better handwashers and mask-wearers than our past selves, we have adapted and changed beyond belief in the past year to portray all that is COVID-19.

Through a year of difficult modifications and necessary endurance, we now cover our faces while opening our senses to respond to changing times and to stay aware of the trending mask designs. And while six-foot distances and national conflict gives an opportunity for division, we take the past 365-plus days into account as a reminder of how important it is to stay united and connected, and support one another while remaining socially distanced and safe.

This Day in History

EVENTS May 7, 1664 - Louis XIV of France inaugurated the

Palace of Versailles.

May 7, 1867 - Alfred Nobel patented dynamite.

May 7, 1915 - German submarine sank the British ocean liner Lusitania.

May 7, 1945 - Germany signed unconditional

surrender at Allied headquarters.

May 7, 1975 - President Gerald Ford declared end

to “Vietnam Era” BIRTHDAYS Actor Gary Cooper (1901) Colts QB Johnny Unitas (1933) May 7 is National Roast Leg of Lamb Day!

Page 6

The Rivers Edge

News

May 7, 2021

AAPI community grapple with rise in hate, violence in US Continued from page 1

against Asian Americans.

On March 16, 2021, mass shootings occurred at three spas in Georgia. Robert Aaron Long, the alleged shooter, killed 8 victims (Soon Chung Park, Hyun Jung Grant, Suncha Kim, Yong Yue, Xiaojie Tan, Daoyou Feng, Paul Andre Michels, and Delania Ashley Yaun). Six of the victims were Asian women. Long has been charged with eight counts of murder and one count of aggravated assault.

“I guess it was a really bad day for [Long] and this is what he did,” in a press conference on the shootings, the Cherokee County’s Sheriff Department Captain, Jay Baker, stated. Baker added, “[Long] does claim that it was not racially motivated.”

But advocates for AAPI human rights argue the rhetoric has been building steadily.

“None of this is surprising,” said Caroline Kitchener, a staff writer for The Lily, a Washington Post publication, in response to the Atlanta shooting. “Attacks against [Asian] communities are often downplayed by politicians and journalists and even members of their own families.”

“The Atlanta shootings have affected Asian or Asian American women more than they’ve affected Asian or Asian American men,” Sailer stated, illuminating the intersectionality of race and gender. “This is due to the fact that Asian and Asian American women have been historically and continue to be sexualized and fetishized. Salt was poured on our gaping wounds as people questioned whether these acts were actually racially motivated and offered alternative explanations. Let’s be clear.

The crime was not perpetrated against Asians; it was perpetrated against Asian women.”

Other Asian members of the Rivers community have also been deeply affected.

“For me, the days following the Atlanta shooting were personally painful,” said Sydnie Schwarz, an 8th grade humanities teacher and the Rivers Middle School Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion coordinator. “As I reflected on how Robert Aaron Long targeted Asian staffed massage parlors because he viewed those East Asian women as objects of sexual temptation, I was reminded of the racialized sexual gaze that I have constantly navigated throughout my own life. I reflected on the tolerance I have built for this gaze, and I felt sadness in realizing just how silent I have been when it comes to this dynamic in my own life.”

Schwarz was additionally saddened by the fact that “we have so far to go when it comes to cross-racial solidarity between Asian and Black communities and activism movements” as she thought about “how many Asians felt outrage about the

world without discounting the racism other minorities experience. Down the road, we need more adequate AAPI representation within faculty, administration, and student leadership.”

In addition to acknowledgment, members of the Rivers’ community need to “take educated actions” to be allies to the AAPI community. Davis and Lucy Tonthat ’22 created a document, which was sent out to the school, with advocacy and allyship resources that students can use to support the AAPI community.

First, Davis recommends selfeducation “by using our resources or any other allyship resources before you speak up. Then speak up.” Secondly, she encourages white allies to “actively participate in [their] all-school affinity groups and process the uptick in AAPI hate crimes and racism within [their] monoracial group.

Then, [white allies should] use the tools [they] are given from those meetings to engage in cross-racial conversations.”

Davis suggests that everyone engage with at least one resource from the education section and at least one resource from the action section of the document and that community members “make a commitment to continue acting as an ally beyond this moment.”

Schwarz similarly urges the Rivers community to start showing up as allies and speaking out when racist comments or actions are made.

“I would like to see everyone at Rivers think more critically about our school culture and how they can interrupt the harmful parts of it,” she said. “I have not been on campus for a whole year yet, and I have already become aware of numerous anti-Asian bias incidents, and worse. I ask you to consider ‘what is it about our school culture that allows these actions and comments to manifest?’ Really think about that, and intervene.”

Members of the AAPI community gathered during a Stop Asian Hate rally in Boston on March 27th. (Photo Mary Markos/ NBC10 Boston) Atlanta shootings yet could not community-based” ways that something here. I have chosen to connect this incident and how it proved to be the most meaningbe here, and if I invest at Rivers, points back to white supremacy ful to her to support the Rivers’ then I make it easier for others to to the tragic racial violence that AAPI community: “I saw that do so too.” Schwarz is proud of other people of color experiWen Sailer was already putting the steps her AAPI students have ence—also at the hands of white together resources for Rivers to been taking to be leaders, to supsupremacy.” process the shootings and othport each other, and be changeAt Rivers, a number of the 34 erwise thinking about how the makers within the community. students who identify as Asian school could respond and supTalia Davis ‘21, one of the (6.6% of the student population) port AAPI students. She inspired leaders of BRIDGE, the school’s said they have been the subject me, and I reached out to process student-run DEI club, urges the of some anti-Asian stereotypthis event with her and talk about Rivers community to actively be ing or speech in some mild form potential action steps at Rivers. there for the AAPI community here or outside of the commuI felt held up by my colleagues after the inaction following the nity. when they made space for AAPI Atlanta shooting.

“At Rivers, some overt and voices at our BIPOC faculty “At a moment of reckoning hurtful racism against AAPI stuaffinity group. I checked in on for many in the AAPI comdents happens in private, away Asian students who I already munity, faculty should have from the eyes of adults in the knew on campus, and in checkinterrupted their regularly community,” Sailer said. “A lot ing in on them I was able to take scheduled programming and at of what is seen and experienced on a more supportive role as least acknowledged the sigin public can be categorized as an Asian adult and build these nificance of the moment,” Davis microaggressions. We often get relationships further in authentic said. “Teachers and administraconfused for one another and the ways.” tors need to acknowledge their stereotypes about Asian AmeriSchwarz noted that she feels inaction. It’s never too late to cans are pervasive, (e.g. all the “more comfortable and supacknowledge it. We can’t serve Asian students are in the conserported” by helping her comour BIPOC students if we can’t vatory and are good at math and munity—Rivers. “Rather than admit to ourselves that this is science.) Though this may not investing my time and energy a really hard place to learn in seem harmful on the surface, it into movements that are based sometimes. As an institution, we sends that message that we are a outside of my community or in need to adjust how we talk about monolithic group and we don’t people who live far away, I feel race, validate the racism that the get to deviate from expectations strongly about prioritizing my AAPI members of our communior have our own independent own community and building ty experience here and out in the identities. We feel boxed in and othered.

“In general, there is a strong feeling among Asian Americans that we are invisible in our respective communities, including here at Rivers,” Sailer added.

“We hear loudly and clearly that our voices and our experiences do not matter.”

In response to anti-AAPI actions and the unseen feeling that the AAPI community has, Schwarz has thought of ways to support the BIPOC community at Rivers: “While I have hosted affinity groups in the Middle School, whether Asian, multiracial, or mixed BIPOC, I have felt especially more invested in developing Asian community and inter-BIPOC solidarity at Rivers in the wake of the Atlanta shootings and continuing instances of fatal police brutality.”

Schwarz has devoted most of her time on “more relational and Messages on the bulletin board outside the DEI Office in Lower Campus Center. (M. Meyerhardt)

May 7, 2021

The Rivers Edge

Page 7

Features

The push for equal pay for women in every profession

BY ABBY MATSUYASU ’23 STAFF WRITER

Equal Pay Day in the United States was recognized in March, and the Rivers community is helping to promote our nation’s awakening realization that women are as valuable as men in life and all fields of pay. On March 24th, U.S. National Women’s soccer players Megan Rapinoe and Margaret Purce visited the White House for a meeting with President Biden commemorating Equal Pay Day. March 24th is proclaimed Equal Pay Day because, given that women on average earn about 80% of what men make, it takes almost three months for women on average to make the amount of money that men do in the previous year — and for women of color, the pay disparity is even greater.

From Susan B. Anthony, a key suffrage activist in the late 1800s, to Megan Rapinoe and the modern day fight for equal pay on all fronts, women have been earning significantly less than men for centuries.

Recognition, respect, rewards: the three ‘Rs’ that professional women athletes are demanding. Professional sports, specifically ice hockey, is a microcosm of the stark gender wage gap in the United States. In the current women’s professional hockey league, it would take over 300 years to make up the amount an

NHL player makes in a single season. Assuming the current pay disparities does not improve, equal pay day for professional women hockey players is estimated to emerge on October 24, 2342. Clearly, the models of the current available leagues are exponentially flawed.

To demonstrate the stark inequities, the U.S. National Women’s Hockey team famously boycotted the 2017 World Championship to demand change. Dee Spagnuolo, a partner at Ballard Spahr LLP, represented the players on the 2017 team negotiating a deal with USA Hockey, the National Governing Body (NGB) of ice hockey in the U.S. Though the players were asking for increased wages and winning bonuses, they were as focused on attaining equal services and treatment, such as support staff and more resources devoted to marketing and promoting the game. Overall, the athletes were demanding the same investments in women’s hockey compared to the men’s game. Spagnuolo described how approximately two weeks before the team had to report for the championship training, “the players had decided that unless there was meaningful progress–– and at that point [they] had been negotiating for 15 months without any progress–– they weren’t going to report for camp. They were willing to literally risk their whole careers.” To increase the already

US National Women’s Soccer star Megan Rapinoe talks with the media after she and teammate Margaret Purce met with President Biden to talk about equal pay for women. (Evan Vucci / Associated Press) extremely high stakes, “not only was it the world championships, but they were defending world champions, and they were hosting.”

Finally, after working around the clock negotiating with USA Hockey, Spagnuolo recounts the experience: “One day turned into the next, and essentially when we finally got a deal, they had one day of practice before the puck drop of the first game. It really could not have gotten any closer to the wire.”

As the incredibly successful team placed front and center on the world’s biggest stage, the strike created international pub-

Students give Canvas good marks Continued from page 3

and stay organized, it just makes the day-to-day a lot easier.”

The meeting soon came to discuss the pros and cons of the modules feature of Canvas as well as the calendar. Modules allow teachers to put every pertinent material under a certain tab

“On the home page teachers can post everything that is going on for the next week, which really allows students to get organized and plan their week out.”

- Kendall Diamond ’21 that students can go back to later.

“I like modules because it’s an easy way to see everything you’ve done, all in one place,” said Diamond. “There are no things on paper, or stuff in a google drive folder, which makes it really easy to go back and review for a test.”

The calendar is a useful feature because it allows you to see

every assignment you have due on a given day, week, or even month. “Overall, I have had a pretty positive experience with Canvas this year. Its display is aesthetically pleasing and easy to navigate compared to Podium’s. I also enjoy the calendar tab where I can view all my assignments due on a certain day,” said Will Elwood ’22.

Despite its inherent value to students, the calendar has room for improvement. Smith, when he presented to the faculty, noted the ways in which the calendar could be more clear. “Zoom links cloud up the calendar, making it harder to see your assignments,” he said.

“Also, the fact that there are multiple courses for the same course because of the different trimesters is a pain.”

Another way to improve Canvas that Diamond and Smith communicated to teachers, was consistency. “Some teachers don’t even use Canvas, while some use it all the time, which can make getting your assignments difficult,” Diamond commented.

Diamond, a student advisor, also discussed how her advisees (who are freshman) told her that this imposes an additional difficulty on them, “My advisees tell me that teachers using Canvas in varying degrees, can make it hard for them to find everything they need, which makes navigating

high school for the first time even more difficult.”

The prevailing consensus among students and teachers alike is that Canvas is, overall, preferred to Podium. All of its features allow students to traverse assignments and grades much better than before.

Of course with anything new,

“Overall, I have had a pretty positive experience with Canvas this year. Its display is aesthetically pleasing and easy to navigate compared to Podium’s.”

- Will Elwood ’22 there are certainly a few aspects of Canvas that can be improved for next year, which rests in the hands of the teachers. Despite all of the unique challenges and obstacles that Rivers has faced this year, it can be said that Canvas has been a welcome addition and will benefit students for years to come.

licity, only expanding interest in the women’s game. In the end, not only did the team secure a favorable contract, but they went on to win the title of world champions for the third consecutive season.

After her success on behalf of the players in 2017, Spagnuolo and her colleagues at Ballard Spahr became the legal counsel of the Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association (PWHPA). Given the failures of the existing professional women hockey leagues to treat their players equitably, in 2019 many of the highest caliber women hockey players took a stand in their collective #ForTheGame statement: declaring that these top tier players would abstain from playing in any professional league. The overall goal of the PWHPA is to “develop and launch and create a single sustainable professional league for women in North America,” Spagnuolo says. Now, every single member of the women’s national team in the U.S., Canada, and many of the top players from Europe are members of the PWHPA. Former Rivers girl’ varsity ice hockey coaches Dana Trivigno and Megan Keller are currently members of the PWHPA, playing for the New Hampshire region team. “Oftentimes we are forced to pay and find training on our own throughout the year because we still lack the resources, facilities and marketing opportunities equal to our male counterparts,” Keller said.

Added Trivigno: “No matter the sport, female athletes deserve the same equality and respect in terms of pay and sustainable career opportunities.”

With more publicity each day, including the support and involvement of Billie Jean King, one of the greatest tennis players of all time and a pioneer for women’s sports, the PWHPA is making strides in raising the profile of the women’s game. Additionally, with recent partnerships with NHL teams, including the New York Rangers and the Chicago Blackhawks, the PWHPA is looking to expand their marketing efforts.

“Look at the WNBA as a model, where the women’s league is developed and launched. It helps the women’s league to be more sustainable if you can leverage resources that already exist,” stated Spagnuolo.

Creating a sustainable league for women to play hockey at the highest level requires more than just fair compensation. It is the marketing, services, and established infrastructure that makes a league widely successful.

Luckily, interest in the women’s game is not the issue, given that the Women’s National Hockey Team’s Olympic gold medal win in 2018 racked up more than 3.7 million views.

Though professional sports, namely hockey, is a blatant example of the expansive gender pay gap, gender-based inequities and disparities–– even if unintended–– are prevalent throughout all fields of labor. So, how do we fix this? Unfortunately, there is not one clear answer. Given that we live in a patriarchal society, where men have an indisputable headstart from birth over women, tangible change will not happen overnight. However, it is essential to continue to push relentlessly for policy change and legislation, maybe even one day a constitutional amendment declaring equal rights and pay, regardless of gender identity. President Biden’s willingness to work in tandem with figureheads such as Megan Rapinoe and Margaret Purce shed a light of hope on the possibility for a brighter future for young women across the nation and overseas.

To all of the young women starting to plan a potential career path, Spagnuolo provides inspirational insight on how to navigate a workforce built on gender-based inequities: “Trust your instincts.

Trust the value you bring to your organization. Know your value, know your worth, and speak up. Speak up when you see that you or someone else is not being treated equitably. Be willing to take those risks because that’s how we got the contract in 2017.

It wasn’t about good lawyering, it was about brave clients.”

Page 8

The Rivers Edge

May 7, 2021

Arts

Impressive winter term artwork showcased in galleries

BY MEGAN SWEATT ’24 CONTRIBUTING WRITER

With a new season comes a new rotation of student art on display at Rivers. Whether students are taking an introductory class or a class like advanced drawing, every student is able to share their work with the whole community here at Rivers. New displays can be found in the central Revers galleries and the Bell Gallery in the lower Campus Center. Most students who took an art class during the winter trimester will have a piece on display. If you have not stopped by already it is worth your time.

Students at Rivers are given a unique opportunity. Here kids can be star athletes who also participate in jazz bands and excel in the classroom. High school is a time for self discovery and what better way to do such as to sample different mediums throughout the years, like sculpture, printmaking, photography, and the many more classes offered here throughout one’s highschool experience.

The most impressive point of the matter is that even within a short trimester students can improve and learn so much within a single area of art. When starting a course, such as beginning drawing, students will often have little to no experience with the given medium. But while everyone starts from a different place and level of comfortability, every student has something to be proud of and improve upon by the end of the class.

Some of the 2-D artwork from winter trimester classes currently on display in the Revers Center Gallery.

The seasonal student art exhibit provides different opportunities for everyone at Rivers.

For students who will be showcasing their work in a gallery at the end of their trimester-long course, it provides a space to show off all that they were able to learn and accomplish during the class. Tegan Janis ’24 notes that knowing the term’s final project will ultimately be displayed and shared is a “really good thing to look forward to’’ throughout the trimester and “provides encouragement” for students during the class.

For students at Rivers who are not taking an art and do not have their own work up on display, being able to go around campus and freely see what their peers have worked so hard on is inspiring in itself. Being able to do this presents them an opportunity to explore different mediums and offerings that Rivers has, sometimes before choosing a class

of their own. By seeing what other students have created they might even be inspired to try that medium themselves the following trimester.

Art itself can be a very personal endeavor and idea, and at Rivers it is good to know that the student body feels safe enough to share their work with the community in such a way like a collective gallery. All art classes at the school encourage mistakes in addition to personal growth, and create a safe place for creating in addition to sharing.

Building up from starting a new medium, especially in a beginning or foundations class, to having the confidence to put one’s piece up in the Bell Gallery is growth that every artist here is able to experience.

Now that the art galleries have transitioned into works made during the winter trimester every member of our community is encouraged to stop by and appre-

ciate what all the individuals here were able to create. Every artist creates for a different reason, every piece of art means something different to different people, and everyone has varying levels of confidence in their skill as an artist. With this in mind appreciate every piece of art with a new eye and think about all the effort and patience each one requires.

Since the galleries showcase pieces from all the different disciplines offered, the galleries are diverse in medium and in style.

Not only is each artist’s personal style different, but there will also be variation in the form of art you can find. For example on the walls of the Bell Gallery you can find final projects from drawing courses and on pedestals in the center of this communal space there are numerous ceramic projects such as mugs and small jars, as well as things such as abstract wooden sculpture pieces.

Every piece of artwork created is unique and we hope that by displaying these works for all to see and by updating the collection to share the newest works, students can take pride in all they have accomplished in a trimester and over the course of their art career, as well as inspie the rest of the community to create something new and share something of their own in the next gallery exhibition.

Sculpture pieces exhibited in the Bell Gallery in lower Campus Center.

Coffee House blends virtual and in-person performances

BY CRISTINA GOMEZ ’23 AND ABBY MATSUYASU ’23 STAFF WRITERS

“Spirited, creative, supportive, and joyous” are only some of the lengthy list of words used by the Rivers community to describe the Coffee House. Though not a literal café serving up a piping hot latte or an iced, coldbrew coffee, the Coffee House is a space for Rivers students and teachers to perform live music for a dedicated audience. For years, the beloved Coffee House has been held in the Black Box Theatre in the lower level of the Haffenreffer Building. However, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, like everything else this past year, the Coffee House had to find a new home.

“The biggest problem is not having an audience,” stated Coffee House committee member Calvin Smith ‘21. “Setting up places where we can perform safely and getting the spacing right has been difficult.”

The timeless, dim room adorned with twinkling lights and students crowded around a small stage area is no longer a safe reality, so the committee members had to get creative this

year. The twinkling lights and Coffee House-inspired decorations were brought to a new location this winter: the Revers Center garage. This new setup allowed for proper ventilation and distance for the performers who chose to perform in-person.

Unfortunately, with the garage’s limited space, the audience had to tune in through Zoom.

Through everything lost this year due to the pandemic, the Rivers community has been able to keep a positive perspective and find a silver lining. The changes to the Coffee House are no different. In the fall, although the chosen date quickly turned frigid and rainy, the event was able to be held under a tent outside due to fairly mild temperatures. “Though it is sad to lose the space of the Black Box, being outside allowed for a larger audience,” says Coffee House committee member Schuyler Bartlett ’21.

Another upside to the unprecedented format of the most recent Coffee House is that, similar to the winter musical, students had the opportunity to pre-record their performance to be shown through the Zoom webinar -which many took advantage of.

The setlist and festive lights set the stage for the Winter Coffee House held in the Revers garage. (M. Shah) Regulars at the Coffee House, such as the fan-favorite family bands and the co-leader performances, were still able to put on a spectacular show, even from afar. The winter Coffee House blended virtual and in-person acts together in a seamless show, creating an innovative solution to one of the many hardships of the

COVID-19 pandemic. Per usual, the Coffee House leaders came together as a band to perform a magnificent closing number. This winter, the committee played “Love on Top” by the one and only Beyoncé to close out the night. With beautiful vocals and breathtaking instrumentals, the number encapsulated the cheer-

ful energy of the evening.

Anna Rosenfeld ’23, who performed “Pierre” by Ryn Weaver and many other songs throughout her time at Rivers, holds the seasonal show close to her heart.

“The Coffee House is such a supportive atmosphere, for both old and new performers,” Rosenfeld Continued on page 9

May 7, 2021

Page 9

The Rivers Edge

Arts

Senior Hannah Long’s journey to theatrical stardom

BY AVA PALAZZOLO ’23 STAFF WRITER

If you have attended any performing arts productions within the last seven years at Rivers, Hannah Long ’21 probably stood out to you with her vibrant and enthusiastic energy on and off the stage. Living next to the Rivers campus for most of her life, Long, the daughter of Asst. Head of School Jim Long, has always been involved in the community.

By taking part in every performing arts opportunity and production offered, she has proven that she has connected with the community at Rivers and become a genuine role model.

Coming to Rivers with a deep interest in sports, Long saw a path ahead in athletics. That is, until she took her drama class with Middle School drama teacher and librarian Diane Devore during which Long discovered her passion for performing arts.

As a sixth-grader with no theater background, Hannah decided to take a chance and perform as Violet Beauregard in the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory production.

“By performing, I found confidence in myself and felt comfortable on stage. I craved the excitement, joy, and support I felt, so I wanted to continue my performing arts journey,” she says. Now, having been involved for almost seven years, Long has appeared in many productions such as Alice in Wonderland, Shrek, Our Town, Zombie Prom, Puffs, and Legally Blonde (where her performance left the audiences filled with laughter and admiration).

With her love for Harry Potter, Long’s favorite performance was Puffs, which she took part in the fall of her junior year. Being cast in the comedy and having multiple roles stood out to her in a way her other performances had not. “It was just so different

Hannah Long ’21 delighted and impressed audiences during last year’s Legally Blonde. (Photo: A. Richins) than anything I’ve ever done and probably ever will do, but it was the best time,” she says.

Outside of school, Long continues to leave an impact and inspire others to see performing arts as a great opportunity and experience. She has interned at a casting company in Boston and was the theater counselor at Camp Nonesuch, where she directed plays for younger kids and encouraged them to find their passion on the stage and the supportive community off the stage.

This year, COVID-19 made Long’s and every performer’s experience very different. As stages turned to Zoom screens and applauses turned to Zoom chats, performances at Rivers were drastically altered. However, Long and her cast members took the chance to perform as an opportunity to contribute positive energy to the campus community.

Natalie Kloman ‘23, who performed in this year’s Bring Back the Broadway Lights with Long, describes the enthusiasm Long brought to the performance. “She

puts so much effort into singing and acting. She is always so kind and motivates those around her as she brings such positive energy to the Rivers community,” Kloman says.

With Long’s performance in “For Good” from Wicked and “Burn” from Hamilton, she struck her virtual audience with her incredible singing, making the performance one to remember.

Participating in the arts at Rivers has been nothing short of impactful for Long, especially when it comes to the community and friendships she has made behind the scenes. Through her performances, Long has developed a sense of confidence that guides her every day in her interactions with others, her schoolwork, and yes, her performances.

“It can be hard to find yourself in a community of a lot of other people, but I think what made me confident in who I am was being around those people, especially my castmates. They support you to make mistakes, to make a fool of yourself, to be able to laugh at yourself, to be bold, and to be

confident with yourself through their support,” Long says.

Performing arts has given her the opportunities to find herself in a community where through the energy and enthusiasm, she was able to form bonds with her castmates and find excitement in every moment, from rehearsals to performances. Long’s director, Zoë Iacovelli, was easily able to remark on the crucial contributions Long made on and off the stage. “The audience falls in love with her charm and authenticity. In addition to her incredible talent, Hannah demonstrates leadership in rehearsal with a kind and supportive attitude to her castmates,” Iacovelli says.

Both impactful and talented, Long has been a role model for other students and set the bar higher with each of her astounding performances. “She has a charisma and a grace that people are drawn to, and she makes people feel accepted and welcomed,” explains Long’s castmate Maggie Leeming ’21.

As Long looks forward to her future in college, her love for theater and the community

behind each performance, allowed her to make her choice with a focus on opportunities in performing arts. Next year, she will be attending the University of Michigan for a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in acting. She decided that taking a chance to pursue her passion was more important to her than pursuing an alternative path in college.

With an ultimate goal to do what she loves, Long looks forward to this opportunity filled with excitement and a chance for her to grow in theater while forming new relationships and doing what she loves.

As Long looks back on her experience in theater and at Rivers, she has learned and become in possession of a lot of knowledge regarding taking chances and finding oneself, specifically in the performing arts community at Rivers. She has pressed the point that doing what you love is so much more important than what others think of you, and finding your passion will provide you with the confidence to go about your life.

“Having the confidence to take risks and do the things you love is the most important thing I’ve learned at Rivers,” Long says. “You have to learn to be bold in something you love, even if it scares you. Go for it and do you.”

Long encourages every student to simply try theater because you will fall in love with each performance and the supportive community.

As Long leaves Rivers next year to continue in pursuit of her passion, she will be greatly missed in each performance in the community. But with her performances to look back on, jokes to remember, and dances to reminisce about, she will continue to serve as a role model and an immense contribution to the performing arts community at Rivers.

Performers drawn to Coffee House’s relaxed atmosphere

Continued from page 8 said. Though Rosenfeld was once a nervous and jittery first-time performer, she is now going on to her fifth Coffee House with more confidence than ever. Putting oneself out onstage can be a nerve-wracking experience, and the Coffee House attempts to ease those nerves by creating a stress-free, peaceful environment.

Helping to cultivate this low-stakes culture are so many first-time performers who take the stage at each Coffee House, stepping out of their comfort zones and showing the community a new side of themselves.

Many students find a vessel for their creativity in the Coffee House, and their talents might not have been revealed if not for the beloved event. After all,

showcasing the incredible talent of the Rivers community is precisely what the Coffee House is meant to do.

Another contributing factor to the stress-free atmosphere is the diversity of performers. Not only are students who are part of the conservatory welcome to perform, but anyone and everyone is encouraged to do so.

From varsity athletes to science teachers (shoutout Rey Rey, aka Mr. Reynoso), the Coffee House is a microcosm of the expansive talent held within Rivers. Bartlett encapsulates this sentiment: “It doesn’t matter who you are, everyone is so excited for you to perform. It’s just great to see so many different people across so many different varieties of the school to come together to do something we all love.”

The Coffee House is an event unlike any other at Rivers. It is completely student-led and allows for talent and creativity to be shared with the whole community. Few other showcases have the power that the Coffee House holds to bring together such a wide array of people across the school, and attendance is high every trimester.

With the consistent schedule of one Coffee House each season, students and faculty alike are always in anticipation of the festive display. One of the reasons the Coffee House is always such a success is the energy of the audience with such high excitement. Though the performers are integral, the viewers also play a large role in the legacy of the Coffee House.

“It’s literally my favorite

event at Rivers. It represents the best part of Rivers, it’s a place where it’s completely safe and so free,” Smith says. “And you get to see people for all their talent and who they are. It’s the best.”

Rivers, like every other ISL school, is known for its competitive, yet motivating, atmosphere.

However, the Coffee House is an escape from this sense of overwhelming pressure.

“It is such a great community and everyone is so supportive, and that’s not something you always get to see on campus,” Bartlett said.

A number of years ago, a group of students took this competitiveness into consideration in a doubling effort to promote the arts, and the Coffee House as we know it came to be. A simple senior project by these students

at the end of a taxing school year took root in the community, and the inspirational event was taken up by a new year of students, passing it down through the grades to create a showcase of incredible talent.

Looking to the final Coffee House of the year, the community already has high expectations. “It should be live,” Smith says, “so we’re trying to get as many people as we can and hopefully we will be able to do it on the field with an unlimited audience.”

After over a year filled with screens, the spring Coffee House will be a light at the end of the tunnel, and a literal, and figurative, breath of fresh air. Make sure to come out and watch the Senior Coffee House Friday, May 21 at 7:00 p.m.

Page 10

The Rivers Edge

May 7, 2021

Sports

After loss of last season, lax teams make a strong return

BY SOPHIE DUBARD ’22 STAFF WRITER

After last year’s spring sports were cancelled due to the pandemic, Rivers boys’ and girls’ lacrosse teams are more fired up than ever to take this season head-on. After months of playing wall-ball themselves at home or meeting up with a friend to shoot around—socially distanced, of course–– both the boys’ and girls’ teams were reunited at last in March.

In fact, the girls’ varsity lacrosse team had not played a game in 756 days until their season opener against Thayer Academy on April 17th. “We knew we had been working so hard to finally get to this point,” said one member of the squad. “We are all so pumped to be playing together again, and the energy both on and off the field is phenomenal.”

The energy at their first game was tangible, even though the team was faced with one of the strongest teams in the ISL. New players Britt Nawrocki ’22 and Murray Finard ’24 scored their first career goals. The team is also armed with a new assistant coach, Katie Brooks, joining head coach Lisa Parsons and assistant coach

Britt Nawrocki ’22 heads up field during Rivers’ 18-4 win over BB&N on Saturday, April 24. (Adam Richins) Sarah Freeman. Brooks, a star athlete, was a two-time lacrosse captain at the University of North Carolina and has won countless awards and championships.

There is no doubt that she’ll bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to the team.

“You can really tell that she’s genuinely interested in seeing our success as individuals,” said Elena Zuvekas ‘22.

Even coping with strict COVID-19 guidelines, the team consisting of two seniors, eleven

juniors, three sophomores, two freshmen, and an eighth grader - has an undeniable bond. However, the team is missing one of its star players, Mallory Hasselbeck ’21, who will play lacrosse at Boston College next year. Hasselbeck, one of the three team captains, was injured during the fall and required surgery.

“It’s definitely not the same without Mallory out on the field with us, but she’s killing it from the sidelines, helping to coach and leading our celebrations,”

“Not making the team [varsity] was a good way to push me and also taught me how serious lacrosse was at Rivers and how competitive it was. Not making varsity makes me who I am today,” says Kraft as he reflects on his lacrosse experience at Rivers. His hard work paid off, as he got to start on varsity sophomore year. Unfortunately, all spring sports came to a halt last March when the pandemic hit, so a junior season was out of the question. Now in his senior year, he has high hopes for the team and the season.

Kraft’s impact on the team is evident to his coaches and his teammates as he proves himself to be a valuable player. “Joey is a good leader and a good distributor of the ball. He is a smart and heady player who effectively finds the open man. Generally speaking, when Joey is playing well, so is the team’s entire offense,” says head coach Justin Walker.

The team started the season with three scrimmages against St. Sebastian’s, Nobles, and Roxbury Latin. The first game resulted in a 5-15 loss to Belmont Hill, but Walker states, “Seeing as we have a young and inexperienced team in general, this start to our season is not wholly unexpected. We’re a solid squad though, and we’ll keep improving.”

As for Kraft, the captain has plenty of ideas for how to make the remainder of the season the best possible under COVID circumstances and restrictions. The team currently only consists of

four returning players, one of whom is out for the entirety of the season. A product of COVID, this means the remainder of the team is composed of first-time varsity players, including many underclassmen. So this season, it’s mainly about getting the younger guys playing and comfortable so that they’re ready to fill the seniors’ shoes next season.

“Although there might not be ISL playoffs, our goal is to be one of the best teams in the ISL,” Kraft shares.

When he’s not dominating the lacrosse or football field at Rivers, Kraft keeps himself very busy off and on campus. On top of the school lacrosse, he plays club for the Top Gun Fighting Clams or just the “Clams.” He previously participated in the DECA club and Red Key and is also a leader of the JCC and a student advisor to a group of freshmen. “That role (student advisor) has helped me meet the younger guys, especially if they’re on my team,” Kraft comments.

While a student-athlete schedule and workload like this is obviously demanding, Kraft takes a positive view on what often overwhelms students: “Playing sports helps me do better in school.

During the season, it’s easier for me to keep a tight schedule, and having more activities helps me focus on the task at hand.”

It’s hard to believe that the 2020-2021 school year is coming to a close, and we are starting to see the impact Kraft, along with countless other influential seniors, are leaving behind at Riv-

Zuvekas said. “Our other captains, Carly Peterson and Anna Miller, have done an amazing job stepping up, getting us organized at practice and hyping us up for games.”

This energy clearly translates to the field: the team won both of their games versus Buckingham, Brown & Nichols this past weekend, with scores of 12-7 and 10-9.

The boys’ lacrosse team is no different: they are just as fired up for their season. With Gregg Dennison, who will play at Provi-

dence College next year, and Joey Kraft, who will play at Tufts, serving as this year’s captains, the team has great leadership.

“Our captains are constantly challenging us to become better, and we’ll continue to mesh as a team as the season progresses,” said new junior standout Jaiden Wilde ’22. The team, made up of eight seniors, 10 juniors, six sophomores, and two freshmen, has faced some struggles early in the season as they squared off against the top teams in the ISL. Still, it’s a young team. Only four of the current players were members of the team during the 2019 season, as the team’s 2020 season was cancelled. As they look forward to the rest of the season, they plan to focus on their team dynamic that will help them on and off the field.

This past weekend, the team had a game versus BB&N. Being the first game that has allowed fans to attend throughout the pandemic, the Rivers Fanzone was equipped with posters and Rivers gear. The team’s grit, along with the Fanzone’s raucous enthusiasm, led to a 20-8 win. The team did not disappoint during the next day’s game, bringing about an 18-4 win.

Lacrosse captain Joey Kraft a leader on and off the field

BY NATALIE KLOMAN ’22 STAFF WRITER

From his time on the lacrosse and football fields to the classroom to student advisory meetings, Joey Kraft truly embodies what it means to be a successful student-athlete. While he has been at Rivers, Kraft has exemplified and exceeded Red Wing standards in academics and athletics, all while demonstrating the qualities of a good leader. Though his hard work can be seen in many aspects of his life, he truly shines on the lacrosse field.

Kraft began playing lacrosse in the fourth grade for Newton Youth Lacrosse. Under the leadership and coaching of his dad, who played goalie in college, he progressed onto club lacrosse and eventually Rivers. He started playing the sport and stuck with it because he loved how fast the game was, along with it combining all the sports he had been playing when he was younger.

At Rivers, Kraft immediately began making his mark on the highly competitive athletics program. He played four years of varsity football and held the captain position this past fall alongside fellow senior Gregg Dennison.

While it was extremely difficult to hold a somewhat normal season with COVID regulations, the team worked hard to push themselves and their teammates to be the best players they could be. In terms of lacrosse, Kraft began as a swing player between JV and varsity during his freshman year of high school.

Senior captain Joey Kraft will play at Tufts. (Photo: Adam Richins) ers. As a captain, Kraft finds it important to make sure everyone is ready to play and work, along with holding everyone accountable and giving everyone a job to do. “It’s being someone to look up to and doing the right thing and showing the younger guys what they can do to help the team and what they’ll need to do in the coming years,” states Kraft.

Like many of the athletes on campus, Kraft remembers the team dinners, locker room time, and long bus rides. “Team bonding activities make it feel more like a family than just a team. And those close games in the fourth quarter when we were fighting together makes me feel like I’m in my element and it’s the true happiness of lacrosse to me,” says Kraft.

This upcoming school year,

Kraft will attend Tufts University where he plans on playing lacrosse. There, he hopes to help the program win a national championship. “As a personal goal, I want to make a difference and make an impact on the team,” Kraft states. Off the field, he is unsure about his major but is leading towards economics or finance in addition to entrepreneurship.

While Rivers will miss Joey Kraft’s presence everywhere on campus, the impact of his leadership and athleticism will leave a lasting impression for everyone, especially those designated with the task of filling his shoes. Walker sums it up perfectly: “He’s been an effective member of the team throughout his time here and working his way into being an important contributor.”

The Rivers Edge

May 7, 2021

Page 11

Sports

With lots of talent, baseball squad having strong spring

BY JACK DOSSANTOS ’23 CONTRIBUTING WRITER

As with all things in the past year, the baseball season has been different in many ways, but the team is doing their best to take advantage of what opportunities they do have.

In the preseason, the baseball team usually takes a trip to Florida in order to shake off the rust and face some good competition in preparation for the upcoming season. Because of COVID-19 this trip was canceled, and the team got started on campus with tryouts during the first week of March break. Rivers is one of the luckier schools when it comes to this timing, as public school leagues have been forced to postpone their spring season in order to accommodate the fall sports that have been moved to the spring. Public schools started their seasons with tryouts at the end of April.

At Rivers tryouts, there was an abundance of talent from young players who showed coaches how well they could play at a varsity

Ian Keusch ’23 pitched well against BB&N. The Red Wings won the game 4-3 thanks to some clutch hitting. (Adam Richins) level. With spring sports being cause campus has the space to do canceled in the 2019-20 school so, the team has been able to pracyear, the team is very short on ex- tice every day that school was in perience. With only three return- session. ing varsity players, two senior Coach Sullivan has made sure captains and one junior, the team to push the players each and evhas been leaning on their young ery day to be the best they can be. players. On a team of 19, 12 play- The team routinely goes over siters are underclassmen. Captains uational baseball drills and works Ben Genser ’21 and Jack Dorsey on nuanced signs and secret calls ’21 have taught the young players to attempt to outwit and confuse well and been great mentors and other teams, a hallmark of Coach teammates to all. Thankfully be- Sullivan’s coaching style. A for-

mer catcher himself, Sullivan makes sure catchers are leading the team and communicating when necessary. He also routinely puts the infield and catchers through drills in an attempt to improve their fundamentals and routine play making. Assistant Coach Brad Cohen has worked with the pitchers for many years, and he continues to help try to make the pitchers the best they can be. He repeatedly talks about how excited he is to work with the pitchers on the team, as many of them are young and inexperienced. He hopes to be a large part of the development of his pitching staff.

In the first scrimmage of the year against St. Sebastian’s, only one senior was in the starting lineup. In this scrimmage, the team fought well but was outmatched by an experienced Arrows team with many upperclassmen in the rotation. Unfortunately, the next two weekends saw cancellations.

The Thayer team had a positive COVID case, and the New England weather had other plans than baseball when the game was

scheduled for Pingree.

Three weeks after the St. Sebastian’s loss, in the first official game of the season, five freshmen and sophomores cracked the starting lineup against BB&N. Although these guys have not seen many varsity innings before, the team played with confidence and swagger, pushing them to a 4-3 victory over the Knights. The team was helped by an early run from the leadoff hitter Dom Morelli ’22. A piece of clutch hitting

by Will Conway ’21 gave the team some insurance runs in the bottom of 6th inning. Ian Keusch ’23 had a stellar pitching performance, pitching 6 1/3 innings and allowing only two hits and one run.

All the players and coaches are very excited to see what this season and future seasons will hold for the young Red Wings. With a young, energetic group, there are many things to be excited about for the future, and only time will tell how successful this team can be as they gain experience and maturity as players.

to develop our players so we are in a more competitive situation next year compared to where we have been,” Parrish said. The team was especially excited to embark on their first match of the season against Thayer Academy on April 17th. In anticipation of the match, Parrish said, “We are excited about competing for

the first time in a while. Thayer provides good competition and attitude.” Although they were ultimately defeated 2-5, they were still thrilled to have the opportunity to compete.

After a long two years off the courts, Rivers tennis is more psyched than ever to be playing competitively again.

a winning season and positive experience.”

Unlike some other ISL schools, the softball team has had the opportunity to practice every day, honing their skills and shaking off the rust. For the first time ever, softball’s home is the Nonesuch Field, meaning the team has become acclimated to playing on turf, rather than a dirt diamond.

To start off the season, the team scrimmaged Nobles, resulting in a narrow one-run loss.

Remaining positive, the team got right back to work crushing the Thayer Tigers with a final score of 24-6.

Senior captain and left fielder Maggie Leeming attests to the team’s positive attitude. “I have always felt that softball is one of the most supportive teams on campus,” Leeming said. “Everyone lifts each other up and that is one of the main reasons why we do well. Softball is a mental game, so it means everything to have a team that has your back.

I couldn’t have asked for a better team for my final season.”

The following weekend, the team faced a doubleheader against BB&N. Splitting the weekend, softball beat the Knights 19-14 on Friday, then suffered a loss

on Saturday. Each high scoring game confirms the team’s strong offense, including freshman Sam Chappell belting a homerun in both BB&N games.

Every day, head coach Christine Fitzgerald leads the team in creating a more explosive offense including strong at-bats and aggressive baserunning. Defensively, the team continues to refine infield precision and expand outfielders’ range. With the addition of pitching coach Ellie Strayer, pitchers are working on increasing their consistency and velocity, while trusting their teammates to hold the line behind them.

Looking forward, the team has a full schedule in the final two weeks, including Governor’s Academy, St. George’s, and Milton. The Red Wings are growing more cohesive everyday with new players gaining confidence and experienced players taking on more leadership.

Making strides every practice and each game, there is nothing but excitement surrounding this softball season. Don’t underestimate the softball team this year, this new team is rebranding what it means to play softball at Rivers. If you make the scenic trek to catch a game, you wont regret it.

Tennis teams embrace season with positivity, excitement

BY HANNAH LAPIDES ’22 ASSISTANT EDITOR

For the first time in two years, the Rivers tennis team is back on the courts! Despite the unfortunate cancellation of last year’s spring sports season due to COVID-19, the boys’ and girls’ teams are tackling this season with plenty of grit and an optimistic attitude.

Aside from the decrease in the number of matches the team will play and the cancellation of the preseason trips over March break, which according to varsity boys’ coach Phil Parrish were “a good bonding experience,” this 2021 spring tennis season has not been overwhelmingly different because of COVID-19. Due to tennis being an individual sport, the athletes have been able to play normally while maintaining a safe social distance.

“We obviously have to wear masks during practice and play,” varsity girls’ coach Sally Kellogg explained, “but the girls have adjusted.”

For both teams, the most important thing is that they are able to play on a team together.

Tennis, at least for girls, was very popular this year. More than 40 girls tried out, and 14 were placed on varsity while 16 were placed on JV. Although cuts had to unfortunately be made, COVID-19 has made it so that more people than in years past could be on the team. After missing last season, several new additions have been made to the team, and Jess Bargamian ’21, Cecily Bua ’21, and Annie Heuer ’21 lead the girls team as captains.

“The team dynamic is one of

the best I have coached at Rivers.

Jess, Annie, and Cecily are great team leaders,” Kellogg commented.

Both the boys’ and girls’ teams had their first matches against Thayer Academy on Saturday, April 17th. Although the girls lost 3-6, Kellogg had a positive reaction to the match overall: “I played almost all my players instead of repeating in doubles.” There aren’t ISL Championships this year, so Kellogg is more focused on making sure everyone gets to play, even if this means that the team’s record doesn’t reflect the full strength of the team.

This year, everyone is so relieved to be playing tennis again that the season has been mainly fun-focused. “Everyone gets along so well, and practice is filled with music, fun games, and some competitive challenge matches,” remarked Bua. The boys’ team has had a similar attitude about this season.

“Even with all the protocols, the boys are working hard and thankful we are getting to play,” said Parrish. As with the girls, the boys’ team has had several new additions since their last season two years ago. Mason Tuff ’21 and Cam Floyd ’21 have taken on the leadership role of captains, and according to Parrish, “they are bringing a new attitude and work ethic to the team.” The team also saw the addition of seventh grader Koray Abramson and eighth grader Charlie Schlenker, along with Colin Falvey ’23 and Aaron Weiner ’23.

This being Weiner’s first Rivers tennis season, he is very

excited to be playing competitively. “Playing with everyone is so fun,” he remarked, “and it’s just really great to be back out on the court and be playing tennis again.”

The boys team, in particular, was very eager to get back into competition after being away from it for so long. “Our goal is

Offense powering softball team

BY DANA LOWITT ’23 AND ABBY MATSUYASU ’23 STAFF WRITERS

New players, new field, new team: Rivers softball is back and better than ever. After missing the entirety of last season because of the pandemic, the softball program at Rivers has worked tirelessly to revive the sport again.

Usually, the softball team takes the biannual trip to Florida for spring break to prepare for the upcoming season. However, this year spring break preseason practices were held here on Winter Street.

Another difference to this season is the very young makeup of the team. Given the missed season, only four out of the 14 players are returning to the team, with ten underclassmen, including one 8th grader. However, with strong senior leadership, the team has continued to make a name for softball among the other winning spring sports teams at Rivers.

“I feel that the new members of the team this year have fully embraced being a part of the team,” said senior captain and shortstop Abby Weiss. “They have found their roles and have contributed on and off the field to make this

Page 12

The Rivers Edge

May 7, 2021

Impressive results for talented and motivated track team

BY ABBY SIKORSKI ’22 STAFF WRITER

The varsity track and field team is back and more ready than ever! The track season comes long-awaited after the cancellation of the 2020 season due to COVID. So, as the spring season rolled around, the extended hiatus left the team eager to reunite.

“The track team has had a great start to the season,” captain Amanda Gary ’22 explained back in March. “Everyone has come to practice ready and excited to run, and the team energy has been great.”

This year’s team roster consists of 25 athletes ranging from all grade levels in the Upper School.

Among the athletes are six seniors who return for their final season with the team, among them captains Max Meyerherdt ’21 and Calvin Smith ’21. Joining Meyerherdt and Smith as a captain is junior Amanda Gary. Together, the three captains serve as role models for the entire team through their leadership and dedication.

The team itself, which consists of both returning and new athletes, is filled with fresh talent as well as seasoned veterans.

This year, returning coaches Steve Paluseo and Paul Karasch are joined by new coach, Sequoyah Reynoso. Reynoso, an upper school science teacher, will serve as a sprinter coach for the team.

With strong leadership all around, nothing has stopped the track team from training for success; even the reality that Rivers does not have a track of its own.

On a typical afternoon at Rivers, it is not uncommon to see the team running swiftly around campus.

“The team has been creative and found great places to go for long runs and sprints at Rivers,” explained Gary.

In years past, the Weston High School track has been a home base for the track and field program, but due to COVID, the team has had to alter its practice location and schedule. Though, more recently, the team was able to practice at the Weston High School track for the first time, and they expect to continue practicing there a few times a week moving forward.

The teams driven training schedule sets the athletes up for success at their first meet of the season. On April 17th, on a brisk Saturday afternoon, the team competed against Thayer Academy at Rivers’ home field. Although the meet was not officially scored, the team made a great showing nonetheless.

Leading the pack was sophomore Max Kemper who impressed with wins in the 110-meter hurdles and the 300-meter hurdles. Oliver Carswell ’22 and Sam Lyons ’23 also won their respective events, garnering even more success for the team. Regarding the field events, Adebiyi Oyaronbi ‘21 won the discus event, proving a strong start to his senior season. Freshman Keagan Harder also made a strong showing with a win in the pole vaulting event with a staggering height of 9 feet 6 inches. For the girls, Margo Lewis ’21 secured a second-place spot in the 1500m race; Lewis will be running cross country and track & field for Carleton College in the fall.

A week later on April 24th, the team competed against Belmont Hill School and Lawrence Acad-

emy at Belmont Hill. The meet proved to be another strong showing for the group; senior Max Meyerhardt won the long jump and Kemper won the 110m high hurdles and the 300m hurdles.

Another excellent meet for the girls also, with Lewis winning the 1500m race and Gary securing the 400m and 800m races. “It was exciting to see the team excel again, especially with some tough com-

petition against Lawrence Academy,” said Gary.

The team’s strong showing is just a preview of what is to come during the final weeks of the season.

Golf team playing well this spring

BY KENDALL DIAMOND ’21 AND ELLIE MCCARRON ’21 ASSOCIATE EDITORS

Warmer weather with many sunny days ahead can only mean one thing: golf season. As the course begins to defrost, the Rivers golf team is getting ready for a season unlike any other.

An impressive squad of young golfers ranging from 9th to 12th grade, these boys and girls have looked forward to getting back out on the course to prove to the ISL what they are capable of after the loss of the 2020 season due to the pandemic. Head coach Keith Zalaski put it best when he said, “It’s clear with their attitude and work ethic that this group will get a lot of the season, and I know I speak for them in saying we are ready to get out there and test ourselves against the ISL.” In order to prepare for a successful season of winning matches and player development, the team has been diligently working hard at practice three days a week. The golfers head to Kohr driving range in Natick, Sandy Burr, and Wayland Country Club to get their reps in order to be ready for each match. Two days a week the players put in the work at the driving range and the remaining day is dedicated to playing a round of nine holes in order to mimic an ISL match for

practice.

Senior captain Ben Snyder has been a stellar asset to the golf team since his freshman year. As he embarks on his last season as a Red Wing, he spoke highly of the young team they have. “The team is special with a mix of new and returning players with lots of raw talent,” Snyder said.

“When I first saw the whole team together hitting at the range, I was shocked with just how well everybody up and down the lineup was hitting the ball.”

It is all true; the rookie team is stacked with hockey players who took their hobby of golf to the next level and stud freshmen such as Camille DeStefano, who, Synder said “has never missed a fairway.” With a tri-match versus Nobles and Thayer and a following one versus Milton Academy, the Red Wings played at their home course, Nashawtuc Country Club in Concord, and the squad was finally able to showcase their hard work over the past year. The Red Wings had their first win (5-2) of the season over BB&N. Coach Zalaski and Assistant Coach Mac Caplan have been known to make the golf team uber successful in putting up great scores, as well as making the stereotypical stressful environment on the course into loads of fun.

Freshman Camille DeStefano has been a strong contributor to the varsity golf team this spring.

(Adam Richins).

“I will deeply miss having Z and Mr. Caplan as coaches,” Snyder said. “They are the best because they keep us focused but love competing with us and always make the team laugh even if he doesn’t hit longer than me off the tee anymore.”

Experienced coaches such as Z and Caplan bring a unique style of teaching about attitude toward the game.

“I love this group and they have a great balance of working on their game and finding ways to have a few laughs along the way,” Zalaski said. “It’s clear with their attitude and work ethic that this group will get a lot out of the season.”

Community mourns tragic passing of Terrence Clarke

BY MAX MEYERHARDT ’21 EDITOR

The news broke so suddenly it almost seemed fake. People on Twitter and other unreliable media sites erupted in fear and confusion as a rumor that Terrence Clarke, a member of Rivers’ Class of 2021 for his freshman year, tragically passed away in a car accident on April 22nd. This horrific news was later confirmed true by Clarke’s agent, Rich Paul, of Klutch Sports, with whom Terrence had just signed one day before his passing. The University of Kentucky guard and promising NBA prospect meant so much to the Rivers community, city of Boston, and all those whose paths he crossed. His tenacity and skill on the court, bright smile, and comical demeanor were all things the Rivers community was fortunate to bear witness to during his one year as a Red Wing.

Alongside Tyler Aronson ’18, Clarke proved to be a valuable member of Coach Keith Zalaski’s varsity basketball team and helped lead the team to an impressive 20-6 record and a NEPSAC finals appearance in 2018. Clarke won All-ISL Award

that season, received NESCAC honors, and was beloved by his teammates and coaches.

Coach Keith Zalaski has only the highest of praise for Clarke.

“Terrence attracted people to him of all ages — he had a big smile, an infectious laugh, and if you spent any time around him, you knew he was something special,” Zalaski said in a Tweet shortly after the news broke.

After leaving Rivers, Clarke went on to attend Brewster Academy in New Hampshire whose basketball team is a powerhouse—boasting alumni in the NBA, including Donovan Mitchell and Devonte Graham.

He was ranked 8th in the nation

by Rivals at one point and was selected for numerous accolades including invitations to the McDonald’s All-American Game and the SLAM invitational.

Clarke reclassed after a year at Brewster to his senior year to go to college earlier where he picked Kentucky over UCLA, Duke, Memphis, BC, and Texas Tech. During his one season, Clarke averaged 9.6 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 2.0 assists per game with a career high of 22 points in December before his season was cut short by an ankle

Terrence Clarke, who spent his freshman year at Rivers before moving on to Brewster and then Kentucky this year, was killed in a car accident in LA on April 22. Heralded as one of the best players to come out of Massachusetts in years and a potential first-round NBA draft pick, Clarke was beloved by friends, family, teammates, former classmates, and members of the Celtics.

Above, the Celtics paid tribute to Clarke on the jumbotron during their game at TD Garden on April 27. Right, Clarke during the Rivers Holiday Tournament in 2017. injury.

Most recently, Clarke declared for the NBA draft. He was a projected second round pick and has been compared to NBA stars such as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Will Barton.

He will be greatly missed by his friends, family, teammates, and everyone here at Rivers as his short time here left a big impact - everyone rooted for him

and his bright future.

“It’s a sad day in so many ways, and it’s amazing the number of lives he touched in his short time here,” Coach Zalaski said. “He gave a lot to the game of basketball and those around him, and those things will live on in so many at Rivers and in all places that he spent any amount of time.

Kentucky coach John Calipari

may have said it the best when he wrote: “His enthusiasm and energy—not just for basketball, for life—are what we all hope to have in our journey,” Calipari wrote. “Terrence had figured that part out—that if you wake up every day with a smile on your face and a joy in everything you do, this life is beautiful.”

Rest in peace, Terrence. You will be missed.