News

CAMERON BOOKER

Staff writer

Traveling to and from school hasn’t been easy lately, and here’s why. Leading up to the winter holidays, traffic has been picking up both on SEPTA and on the streets of Philadelphia. People are shopping all over the sitting and visiting as well so it’s to the point where it it overwhelming the commute to and from school during the busy times of the holiday and the just regular times driving and catching the train because during the holiday and these past few months traffic has been a lot heavier and there are a lot more accidents. It is also more hectic on the train being that a lot of people are traveling to different locations to shop and see family and with their being so much traffic most of the people will bring their bike motorcycle onto the train even bringing bags of items onto the trains taking up plenty of seats.

Strategies to getting to school on time and possibly finding alternate routes to get to school when the roads are hectic. Leaving at an earlier time depending on the distance you are from your destination, try to catch public transportation instead of driving, also try to find parking spots by leaving a little early because you aren’t going to be able to find parking spots that easily leaving last minute for where your going might even have to park blocks away from school. These are most of all of the things that you can do to prepare for leaving. 

After talking to a few commuters i’ve come to the conclusion that riding the train is easier than diving because it is nearly impossible to find a parking spot and the only problem with the train is not having the comfort of finding a seat but if you can deal with that you can park your vehicle at one of the transportation center or even catch the bus and that defeats the traffic and having to find a parking spot. So I say that during these tough times you should try your best to catch the train because you will get a chance to get to your destination on time.

Fatima Abashera

Staff Writer

Saying Goodbye
Late last school year, the Science Leadership Academy community found out that Ms. Diane the secretary would be retiring in the middle of this school year.

Her Legacy

Ms. Diane was the first secretary of SLA since its opening and has made a legacy and impact on everyone in the community.

Vice Principal Ann Leaness and other colleagues explained that it was what made Ms. Diane special. She had the ability to be so welcoming to everyone and the ability to become so good at her job very quickly.

“She was always really welcoming to everyone,” explained Leaness.

These attributes of Ms. Diane would be the first thing people would notice when meeting her. Ms. Diane’s friendly demeanor also allowed students’ experiences at SLA to be easier.
Sophomore Jazmine Young described her experience at SLA as having “different opportunities to excel” because of everything that staff like Ms.Diane brought to work every day.

Outside the Main Office,
Something special about the colleagues Ms. Diane worked with within the main office was the personal relationship they had with her.
“We shared stories about our grandkids’ ‘, Ms. Leaness said, further explaining the friendship they had outside of the office. Ms. Diane has made a continuous impact on the lives of the people working at SLA.

Ms. Leaness also said “She was very helpful” when she was new to the environment and learning the ropes is never easy.

Principal Lehmann has worked with Secretary Diane for the longest and has grown to love what she brings to SLA every day.

“She taught me a lot that I carry with me in my life”, he explained.

The Next Generation,
When asked about possible new secretaries of SLA, Principal Lehmann was clear:

“There’s no replacing Ms. Diane.”

However, the office staff has made an effort to choose someone that would carry Ms. Diane’s legacy every day when working in the main office. Lehmann explained that there were so many excellent candidates for the new secretary.

Oskar Glahn

Staff Writer

The recent verdict of the Kyle Rittenhouse trial caught the attention of people all over America — and the SLA community is no exception. 

Over a year ago, on August 25, 2020, Rittenhouse attended a BLM protest in the heart of Kenosha, Wisconsin armed with a semi-automatic rifle and med kit as a part of what was described as a militia or ‘vigilante group’.

Rittenhouse shot three men, killing two, in what he claimed was self defense. Recently Rittenhouse was found not guilty on all his charges, which left people outraged. In many peoples’ opinion, the facts presented a pretty clear case that Rittenhouse was not justified for his actions that night. 

The verdict sprouted many questions about general safety and white privilege. Students and teachers at SLA had lots to say about how they felt about the Rittenhouse trial.

“The verdict is scary,” said Senior Mira Young. “It just shows what you can get away with on the claim of self defense. It sets a precedent for other people to get away as innocent in similar trials, even when they aren’t. It feeds into the pro-gun movement in America, and just overall reconfirms that going into a situation with a gun as a tool to solve the issue is a good idea.”

Young hopes that the case will be appealed or challenged to result in more gun control, but overall thinks this case will have a negative impact on our criminal justice system.

“It also makes me feel a bit unsafe at marches and protests, which is one of the best ways to peacefully voice beliefs. Allowing people to get away with killing people [at protests] can definitely infringe on people’s first amendment right to freedom of speech if they’re being killed while trying to protest something,” said Young.

She also points out the fact that he claimed he came to the protest as a medic, brought a medical kit, and said that he hoped to help people, but came armed with a rifle.

SLA alumni Horace Ryans says that the verdict of the Rittenhouse trial was not a shock to him. 

“The injustice was expected, and the fact that Rittenhouse walks free is just another way the criminal justice system plays a role in white supremacy,” says Ryans. He thinks that this won’t change the leniency in future criminal trials because this system is made for people like him. 

Senior Max Blakelock disagrees with the not guilty verdict and says that this is just another example of white privilege. 

“If it was a black man in that same situation, I’m sure the response would have been much different. There was also only one black man in the jury.” Blakelock expresses a strong opinion that changes need to be made in America’s system.

Blakelock thinks that the world’s response to this could change things for better or for worse. “If jurors and judges across the US see people’s responses to the verdict, maybe it will change the way they deal with future criminal trials.” He also thinks that it could have a negative impact, since they let Rittenhouse off the hook. Blakelock says that maybe this will increase lenience since the system has acquitted Rittenhouse of his charges, lowering their standard for what is okay and what is not.

“Changes must be made to the system.”