Monthly Archives: April 2018
Gun Violence Protest Movement Sweeps Nation
Arnav Srivastava ‘19
EE Senior Opinions Editor
March 14th, 2018, will go down in history as a lot more than just celebrating Pi Day. In fact, a matter even more irrational was being addressed: the unfortunate increase in gun violence plaguing schools and neighborhoods across the nation.
Facilitated by youth protest organization EMPOWER, the idea quickly caught along for schools across the country to walk out of class for 17 minutes to honor the 17 lives lost at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School from a school shooting. Ultimately, Trumbull High School, alongside many other schools, took part in this symbolic movement to demonstrate their support against these horrific tragedies and honor the Parkland victims.
However, it is the purpose of the movement which ensues conflict, as many different schools protested for different agendas and pushed for various degrees of change. Universally, all schools protested to have a nation with no school shootings: a place where everyone is part of a safer and transitively happier community, a place with less hatred and greater help for those in need, and a place where innocent people do not unfairly suffer at the hands of others.
A Unique Love Story…
Amaya Mikolič-Berrios ‘21
EE Staff Writer
Love, Simon is the not-so-classic love story that the world has been waiting for. This inspirational rom-com based on the novel Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli follows a closeted gay teenager named Simon struggling through life while carrying the secret of his sexuality, a burden that many can relate to.
The movie begins with a description of Simon and his daily life, but is shortly followed by the revelation that he is keeping “one huge-ass secret”. Conflict begins to rise with increasing dramatic irony in which the audience is aware of Simon’s sexuality but his peers are not. Blackmail, peer-pressure, and unwanted outing keeps readers on the edge of their seats and on the verge of tears.
An immense hurdle the directors of Love, Simon had to overcome was to make their story just that: a story. The fact that Simon was gay should not have been over accentuated, since the point of creating a movie based on a gay protagonist was to show what little differences there are between the LGBTQ community and heterosexuals. This was accomplished extraordinarily with the common format of a drama that the world has grown to love.
Trumbull Model Congress Wins Best Small Delegation
Manan Manchanda ‘19
EE Senior News Editor
James Dubreuil ‘19
EE Staff Writer
From March 22 to 25, Trumbull High’s Model Congress Team brought their Varsity Squad down to Philadelphia to compete in the University of Pennsylvania Model Congress competition. With more than 700 delegates in attendance, these 14 students competed among the brightest minds from over 45 schools across the nation. In just 4 short years, Trumbull Model Congress went from being a club of just 8 members to coming home with the prestigious Best Small Delegation award at their 10th conference.
Model Congress gives thousands of students across the nation a chance to engage in debate and critical thinking on some of the the most pressing issues in the country. 14 elite students from Trumbull created bills in their specialized committees, which are modeled after actual committees in Congress. Over the course of the conference, students debate within their own committee, ranging anywhere from 12-20 delegates, and passed legislation moves on to the Full Session. This is a conglomeration of 5 different committees, where debate is usually to a higher caliber and requires delegates to think on their feet, provide ample evidence for their arguments, and work together to get legislation passed.
The Judges Have Ruled: Mock Trail Wins States
Ethan Bachand ‘18
EE Co-Managing Editor
Mock Trial celebrates their March 14th win at the Connecticut Supreme Court.
On March 14th, the Mock Trial team won the state championship by defeating rivals Weston at the Connecticut Supreme Court. The team will now travel to Reno, Nevada in order to compete in the national competition.
This adds on to what is already an incredible run from the team under coach Eric August. Over the past six years, the team has brought home four state championship. All of which have come in back to back years: first in 2013 and 2014, then 2017 and 2018.
Yet this year has proven to be something special, with Mr. August saying that “By far, collectively, the most talented team I have ever had. Our motto this year was this idea of ‘Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard’. The reason behind that was because I recognized how much talent we had and I wanted to make sure they still worked hard, and that being said they did. Not only were they just talented, they didn’t rest on their talent alone. They worked their butts off to get to where they were.”
Spreading the Word About “Spread the Word”
Keith Haring artwork used as the Best Buddies Logo.
Eric Sorge ‘19
EE Staff Writer
The beginning of Spring, March Madness, Saint Patrick’s Day, Women’s History Month: there are many reasons to celebrate the third month of the year for people of all walks of life. For over a million people around the world, March is also a time to celebrate Best Buddies.
Founded in 1989 by Anthony K. Shriver, Best Buddies is a nonprofit international organization. It promotes meaningful, one-on-one friendships between people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and those without, fostering inclusion and promoting the end of the social, physical, and economic isolation of those with disabilities.
Trumbull High School, a finalist for the National Spirit of Inclusion Award, has its own chapter of Best Buddies, hosting numerous social events for its many members. This past March, to celebrate Best Buddies Month, Trumbull’s chapter of the organization launched a school-wide campaign urging students to pledge to stop using the r-word (retard). This was done as part of an international effort known as “Spread the Word to End the Word”.
Walkout Honors Parkland Victims
Ethan Bachand ‘18
EE Co-Managing Editor
Senior, Jenna Zakhour addresses the crowd during the March 14th walkout.
On March 14th, students gathered in the gymnasium to remember the victims of the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. This was followed by a seventeen minute walkout, as the date marked one month since seventeen people were killed in Parkland, Florida.
During a turbulent time in which people across the country debated laws revolving around gun rights, a group of Trumbull High students came together in hopes of organizing an event to raise awareness in their own school community. In the process, they created an entirely student run program that will surely not be forgotten.
Almost immediately, plans began to formulate. Speaking about how he got started, senior class President Matthew Kuroghlian said “That night, when it started to float around that the women’s march and all these other groups wanted to set something up, everyone here and other kids messaged me separately with their own ideas of having a walkout. I thought that was incredible, that everyone thought the same thing independently and came to me wanting to do something.”
A Golden Performance Coast to Coast
Christine Jorquera ’18
Kayleigh Fleming ’18
EE Contibutors
While most students were on vacation or just at home during spring break, members ofthe choir took a trip out west to San Francisco. The choir performed at Grace Cathedral, Mission Dolores Basilica, and Stanford University. Besides performing, here were opportunities to go sightseeing as well.
Highlights of the trip included, visiting the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz, Muir Woods, Sausalito, and Monterey. When there was free time, members of the choir would walk on the pier and through the streets near their hotel. Senior Julie Spillane commented on her experience out in San Francisco.
“In San Francisco we woke up super early because we did so much everyday. My favorite things were our visit to Alcatraz and getting free time to hang out in parks or on the beach,” she said.
First Stop Philly, Next Stop D.C.
Lindsay Adams ’18
Derek Marble ’18
EE Contributors
The THS We The People Team, pictured here at the States. Photo courtesy of Katie Boland
On Thursday, March 29, Trumbull High School’s We The People team traveled to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for a three-day research trip in preparation for their national competition at the end of April. Accompanied by their advisors – Ms. Boland, Ms. Kremzar, and Mr. Margonis – 27 students spent their time in the City of Brotherly Love having calls with BICEN alumni turned lawyers, embarking on a Constitutional scavenger hunt, and visiting some historical sites along the way as the prepare for the national competition at the end of the month.
Lawrence Zhang, a member of Unit 5, found the trip to be very useful in terms of getting focused for Nationals. He relates, “After our victory at the State Competition, the class got to take it easy for about a month while we waited for the new round of questions to come out. It is no secret that getting back into the swing of things has been difficult, however, this trip definitely put my unit right back on track.”
Take Me Back to School, Country Roads
Derek Marble ’18
Lawrence Zhang ’18
EE Contributors
West Virginia Teachers on strike March 4, 2018
