Adrie Young

Column: The Impact of Student Walkouts

May 26, 2022 by Adrie Young Leave a Comment

Adrie Young

Staff Writer

Freshman Eliza Cucchiara speaks at student walkout

On Friday, May 13, around 150 SLA students, including myself, walked out of school to protest the leaked draft of the Supreme Court opinion to overturn Roe v Wade.

Philly Socialist Alternative organized the walkout alongside students from Franklin Learning Center, Masterman, and Friends Select. When freshman Eliza Cucchiara and I heard about it on the Thursday before the event, we knew we wanted to get SLA involved.

There was a lot of work to be done, including reaching out to the organizers of the walkout, coordinating with students from other schools, and assisting them with planning. But the bulk of our effort was spent spreading the word about this event within SLA. While social media was helpful in the process, we talked to a lot of students face-to-face as well. And one question people kept asking Eliza and me was “how will a walkout actually help?”

This question gave me pause because at first, I wasn’t quite sure how to answer. I’d seen that other schools were organizing this walkout, and I’d been so excited to jump on board because it seemed like the right thing to do.

But what would one school walkout do in the face of this national issue? We weren’t protesting anything going on in our school. We weren’t even marching to city hall to demand change from our government. So what were we doing?

Here’s how the event itself went. We marched down Broad street and met up with students from multiple other schools at Love Park. Many people carried signs saying things like “protect Roe” and “mi cuerpo es mio”. A microphone and speakers were set up at the front of the crowd and multiple students delivered speeches, including Eliza. People mostly talked about how Roe v Wade being overturned will affect us, and how it is up to us to call for change from our leaders. Some also called for better school funding, and for the school district to hire more nurses and counselors and create more inclusive sex education. 6abc covered the event in an article.

I think the most impactful part of a walkout is that it shows students that they can and do have the agency to make a difference and challenge people in positions of power. One of the goals of the walkout on Friday was to show people in power that we won’t participate in a society where we don’t have the right to our bodies, and to prove to people that we have the power to organize demonstrations like this, and that we can do it again.

To me, this walkout feels like an excellent starting point. It gave students the chance to take immediate action against this issue, and hopefully, it made people aware that there are things that they can do individually to contribute to a larger movement for change. But student involvement shouldn’t end with the walkout. Before getting SLA involved in the walkout, Eliza and I had plans to work with our peers to raise money for the National Network of Abortion Funds, an organization that assists people who may not have the money or resources to get an abortion on their own. We also have plans to organize two bake sales and hope to help keep SLA students involved in this movement.

No matter what happens with the Supreme Court ruling, we will work to make our voices heard and create change however we can, whether that be raising funds, educating people, or organizing walkouts.

Symonds Is Leaving SLA

May 5, 2022 by Adrie Young Leave a Comment

Lia Dunakin, Adrie Young

Staff Writer

Daniel Symonds, an African American and World History teacher at SLA, is leaving the SLA community at the end of the school year after six years of teaching here.

During his time as a teacher at the school, Symonds has helped to establish many new and exciting programs. These include the SLA bowling team, the rock climbing club, and the international exchange program with Frankfurt, Germany. He also teaches a 10-12th grade elective named Philadelphia Power and Politics.

Mr. Symonds is not leaving Philadelphia, however – he will be attending Temple Law School in the public interest program.

“I would not forgive myself for having missed the opportunity to go to law school,” he said about the career shift. “I can’t imagine another point in my life where I’d have the chance to do this… although I might not enjoy being a lawyer as much, I might not be as good at it, but I think I’ll make more of a difference.”

At law school, one of Mr. Symonds’ main goals is to gain more power, which he hopes to use for the common good.

“I’d like to be a person who can help social movements in my lifetime do well,” he explained about his future intentions. So, as Black Lives Matter, as climate justice movements, as economic justice movements grow in this century, there have to be some lawyers to protect those movements’ money, to help people when they’re dealing with state violence and arrest and things like that.”

Mr. Symonds leaving opened up a spot in SLA’s history department, and he made sure to involve himself in finding a new teacher.

One thing that Mr. Symonds feels strongly about is the importance of hiring a person of color to join the SLA history department. Especially since they would likely be teaching 9th graders African American history, he was adamant about that. “It’s high time that we try, when we’re doing hiring at SLA, to make our staff less white,” he said.

Matthew Kay, a freshman and sophomore English teacher, was also involved in finding a new history teacher. Mr. Kay volunteered to be involved in the search even though he is not in the same department. This is because he would be working closely with them, as he does with Mr. Symonds, since they teach the same students every year.

According to Mr. Kay, to find a new teacher, SLA posts the job, and people interested send resumes and cover letters to Principal Lehmann. He also mentioned that there is always a hiring committee.

“Mr. Lehmann allows any of us who want to be on the committee to be on. I normally don’t volunteer to be on them because it’s a lot of work – you’ve got all the interviews and stuff like that – but this year I’m on it…because if this new person slides into Mr. Synomds’ teaching load we’re gonna be sharing students. And so I figured that while the history department makes the call, I wanted to, you know, lend my voice to it since whoever it is will be someone who I’ll be working with,” said Mr. Kay.

After looking at the applications and deciding which ones they like, the committee brings people in for an interview.

When asked about his personal criteria for the applicants, Mr. Symonds mentioned that he was looking for a person that was enthusiastic about the past, and could make students excited about learning from others. He described it as “an unapologetic nerd.”

Normally, the committee makes an offer off of the interview. But in a scenario where the committee likes multiple applicants, they will provide an opportunity for a demo lesson. This allows teachers and staff members to see the candidates teach, and also provides space for student feedback.

And this is what happened for the two finalists for the position of history teacher; they were brought in to each teach a 20-minute demo lesson to copper stream.

Maxine Wray, a sophomore in copper stream, described what it was like in the classroom during and after the demo lessons. She added that after both of the demo lessons had finished, Principal Lehmann and some of the other teachers observing the lessons had asked the class what they thought about the candidates.

“People were saying that they liked one teacher better than the other, and someone also said that the first teacher was better cut out for SLA because she had students collaborate,” Wray said.

Wray also expressed her opinions on student involvement in the process: “It’s so important to have student feedback, because we’re the ones being taught…I thought it was really helpful.”

In the end, the candidate that both students and teachers liked best, Ms. Clancy, who is a person of color, was offered the job. Ms. Clancy is currently a student teacher at the Academy of Palumbo and is getting her teaching degree at Temple.

“I thought Ms. Clancy did a really good job of showing that she is interested in the people who are doing the learning, not just in the quality of the ideas being shared,” said Mr. Symonds.

When asked his thoughts on Mr. Symonds leaving, Mr. Kay wished him the best in finding new avenues for his passions, such as social justice.

“The second he said ‘I’m going to law school’ I’m like ‘well that’s on-brand. That makes total sense for him,’” Mr. Kay said.

Mr. Symonds expressed that what he will miss most about SLA is working with teenagers.

“Kids are more open-minded, funnier, and just a lot more ambitious and a little less jaded than adults.” From walking around the school and helping students, to a desk job, the paces of each career are very different.

During the beginning of law school, Mr. Symonds told us that he is going to be very focused, and doing everything he can to be a top student. But after the first year, he expressed that he doesn’t want to be a stranger to SLA students.

“I would love to teach, if it’s like, a mini-course…I would love to help teach legal skills to students…I’m still trying to remind people that I really want to help them with college financial aid and rec letters. I’m not really disappearing, but, my priority’s going to be school – just for the first year.”

Students would also love to see Mr. Symonds around the building even if he is not teaching them history anymore.

Mr. Symonds’ advisee, sophomore Anna Diemer, said “Mr. Symonds does a great job at creating a sense of community in our advisory, that is going to be extremely difficult, but not impossible, to replicate.”

“I was pretty sad about [Mr. Symonds leaving SLA] because he’s such an iconic teacher and I feel like his energy is something that SLA needs more of,” said Wray. “It’s like a bitter-sweet feeling. I’m excited to see whatever he does in the future.”

Column: Changing Relationships Between Younger and Older Generations

March 28, 2022 by Adrie Young Leave a Comment

Adrie Young

Staff Writer

My grandmother is a gin rummy fanatic. Practically every time we see each other, we play the card game.

In the beginning, she won a lot. She had decades of experience under her belt. I, on the other hand, had to be reminded of rules and introduced to various strategies. My grandmother was my coach and my rival all wrapped up into one.

And she loved to talk while we played.

“Here’s a pretty card for you.”

“Well that’s not very nice!”

“Oh, I might just take that.”

My grandmother lives in St. Louis, so I don’t see her very often. I suppose the only upside to that is that each of our visits feels more special.

Recently, her memory has started to fade. She often tells the same stories over and over, or asks questions that were answered just a few minutes ago. It can be frustrating when she doesn’t remember simple things I tell her or when she repeats information. But despite this annoyance, I know she needs support from relatives now more than ever.

I saw my grandmother most recently over Thanksgiving break, and, like usual, we played gin rummy. The remarks she made while we played were familiar and fun, but there were a few new ones in the mix as well.

“How many cards am I dealing?”

“Do you remember our scores?”

“What was the knock card?”

Now, I am the one reminding my grandmother of rules and coaching her through the game. As age changes her, I have to take more responsibility, both when it comes to card games and other aspects of our relationship. And maybe that’s just how it is – over time, younger generations have to adapt to take care of the people who used to take care of them.

Recently, my family has been working on moving my grandmother into a retirement home. She met the effort with much resistance at first – my grandmother does not want to admit that her memory is not what it used to be. Almost all of my relatives had to work together for the transition to go smoothly: people have gone to St. Louis to visit my grandmother in her retirement home; my mom and some of her siblings have been going through everything that my grandmother has accumulated in her apartment over the years; we have been sending letters to her new address to make it feel more like home.

I think we have all been affected by this shift in dynamics, especially my mom and her siblings. It is strange to acknowledge how much care and support my grandmother needs, because she is the one who used to provide care and support to the rest of our family.

While it can be scary and uncomfortable to see people around me grow older and need more assistance from others, it is a natural part of life. Just because relationships change doesn’t mean they are any less special. I will always cherish my grandmother, no matter who’s reminding the other of how to play gin rummy.

Is SLA Taking Mental Health Seriously?

March 7, 2022 by Adrie Young Leave a Comment

Adrie Young, Lia Dunakin, Leo Braveman, Biran Mahmoud

Staff Writer

Whether it’s anxiety, depression, or low self-esteem, SLA students are experiencing an unprecedented increase in mental health issues.

School Counselor Zoe Siswick acknowledged that recently there has been a huge spike in referrals to her office this year, especially among teenage girls.

“Everyone is struggling more with Covid issues,” she said.

This trend is not unique to SLA. According to NPR, in the fall of 2020, pediatricians and hospitals declared a national emergency in child and adolescent mental health.
SLAMedia knew that students were struggling at school. But was school a part of the problem, or a part of the solution? We set out to talk to everyone involved — and what we discovered is that there is a disconnect between how students are doing and how SLA programs and policies seek to help.

STUDENT PERSPECTIVE

In an anonymous survey, SLA students spoke honestly about how their mental health is impacted by school.

When asked how school impacts them, 93% of students that responded shared that social interactions at school positively affect their mental health, and 83% said academic workload negatively impacts their mental health. Less than 7% of the answers included the school’s counseling services as a positive influence on their mental health.

When asked what they thought teachers, advisors, counselors, or administrators should do differently to better support students’ mental health, we didn’t get many responses. Of the few answers we received, many simply asked for teachers to assign less work.

One student responded, “Talk about what kind of resources SLA has regarding mental health so students are aware.” After interviewing more students on the topic, it became clear that students only have limited information about their options when it comes to mental health support at the school.

“I know that there’s counselor Ms. Siswick, and I think her door is most of the time always open to students, but that’s really all I’ve heard of,” said Sophomore Kara Clapper.

Sophomore Marly Leventon also named limited options.

“I haven’t seen many resources, The only thing that I’ve seen are signs around the hallways and in the stairwell. They’re encouraging, but it doesn’t mention anybody specific that people can go to if they’re having mental health issues.”

Sophomore Leila Chacker struggles with depression, anxiety, and ADHD, but doesn’t use any of the resources that SLA provides to students struggling with their mental health.

“They don’t really advertise them the right way…it’s a lot of, like, really having to advocate for yourself. But that’s not good when it gets to a tipping point and everything becomes really hard…you actually have to go and find out certain things, so I don’t think that’s the best way that [SLA] could do it,” Chacker said.

Does support at SLA go beyond a counselor and encouraging signs? Why do students have to work so hard to get the help they need?

STAFF PERSPECTIVE

We asked Ms. Siswick if she thinks the school does an adequate job of being proactive and supporting students’ mental health issues.

“SLA has two counselors. One is focused on college and one is focused on socioemotional support. We don’t have the physical human power capacity to be able to provide for all our students’ best needs,” she said.

She also spoke about the students she’s seen, whose mental health issues typically revolve around stress and anxiety. “I think a lot of [mental health issues] start outside of school, and the school can add to it,” said Ms. Siswick.

Ms. Siswick talked about her “open-door policy”, where students can go into her office and seek help at any time. “I would love to have a full-time therapist on staff here so that I could have 40 students a week have full-time therapy sessions”, she added.

Ms. Siswick also knows there are many other students with mental health problems who don’t seek her help. She explained how talking to your advisor is always an option, and that teachers are constantly looking for new ways to provide structure and support – for example, providing students with checkpoints for projects.

Ann Leanness, the assistant principal, also spoke to us about some of the resources surrounding mental health available for students at SLA. “We have some counselors, a school psychologist, and a retired school psychologist who comes to school to work with some students.”

We asked Ms. Siswick how kids who need help with mental health get referred to these resources.

“They would bring an insurance card with them or take a photo of it. Then there is a website with a filter, where you put in insurance, issue and you can read a description of a therapist”

TEACHER PERSPECTIVE

In our survey, we also asked students how mindful they think SLA teachers are of their students’ mental health, both when planning their classes and when teaching. Almost half of the respondents – 14 out of 30 – thought teachers were neutral on this, neither ignoring nor catering to students’ needs.

In her interview, Chacker told us that, “A lot of the teachers are very understanding, but some of them are not. A few teachers that I’ve had would change the weight on my quarter grades so that it would more reflect what I was working on, but other ones didn’t really help.”

9th and 10th-grade History teacher Daniel Symonds talked about how he rarely considers mental health when lesson planning, but feels that it is important, for his class especially, to include trigger warnings for specific content being taught.

He also mentioned the concept of ‘the ethic of care’, which are teaching values that new employees at SLA are taught and encouraged to follow.

“I think the ethic of care is inclusive of mental health,” Mr. Symonds said. His goal is “to create an environment where people are comfortable,” such as not provoking students’ anxieties and having space for different personalities in the classroom.

Mr. Symonds talked about how he has noticed a decline in social interactions and focus in his classroom after students attended virtual school for a year and a half. He stated that this time has made it more obvious to him that kids are not good at having times where they are not stimulated.

“The pandemic has ushered in a much wider and deeper issue in students disengaging in school and finding outlets for their frustration through sleeping, eating, smoking, other drugs, and devious licks,” he said.

He explained that he believes that development happens through social interactions. That’s why he is very adamant about talking to kids about less screen time. It is a habit that he thinks everyone should become aware of.

CONCLUSION

Virtual school took a toll on many students’ overall mental health, but students at SLA have communicated that social interactions during in-person school have left positive marks. Chacker herself noted that as a strength of the school.

“I think the community here is really great,” she stated. “A lot of the people are very supportive.”

However, the gap between resources and students making use of them remains.
Many students aren’t aware of the options at their disposal, and if they are, the resources don’t feel easily accessible.

Even with life getting as back to normal with Covid as it can get, students are still struggling, whether it’s about academic workload or reasons outside of school.

“SLA should have more widely open and accessible resources for kids struggling with school or personal reasons that feel safe and comfortable,” Chacker said.

Crochet is Everywhere

January 13, 2022 by Adrie Young Leave a Comment

Lia Dunakin

Staff Writer

Sophomore Leila Chacker crochets during zoom school

There is a new trend at SLA. Students in every grade have started picking up this new hobby. During covid, everyone was looking for something different to try out — exercise, pottery, cooking or baking However, crochet has seemed to have stuck around. However, this pastime is getting a mixed response from s students and staff.

There is an arts and crafts elective this year at SLA. Students who are interested in activities such as crochet and knitting. Students who have never done these before now have the opportunity to. Vice Principal Ann Leaness, who is the staff member teaching this class, offers any student interested in crafts, free materials, such as yarn and crochet hooks.

Ms. Leaness started her elective about 3 years ago, hoping to create a space for kids to learn non-traditional art skills. Outside of her classroom, you will still see students crocheting.

Most teachers are very supportive and accommodating to this new hobby, and Ms. Leaness expressed excitement towards that. She says, “It’s a great stress reliever, and it’s also great for kids that have a hard time sitting still and paying attention.”

However, not everyone is on board. Some teachers find that crochet or knitting is distracting for their students.

Biochemistry Teacher John Henkel banned crocheting and knitting in his class. He says that he feels the activities are distracting, this being the only reason this isn’t allowed in his classroom.

“If it were video games or magnets that were distracting students, I would ban those too,” he explained.

A visitor to SLA will still find students crocheting in the social areas of the school, the ballroom, the commons, and even just in the hallways.

Some students have even started their own crochet stores on platforms such as Depop, an app that is known for people selling second hand clothing, but is also a place where people can sell clothes that they make themselves

Sophomore Milani Zayas set up a store on Depop, called “Things by Inalim,” to sell her own crochet creations. She currently offers fingerless gloves, ear warmers, crochet shirts and other items. Each item takes her anywhere from 3-10 hours to create.
“I love seeing people crochet in class. It’s really nice to see other people with the same interest as you. I also love talking to people about what they’re making and what their next project is,” said Zayas.

She also mentioned that she tends to crochet when she feels anxious because it’s soothing, and that she would recommend it for anyone.

While the student crochet trend has its limits, the trend shows no signs of slowing down.