';j

~~Z...o

]£~if

A copy of the Ephebic Oath.

Gym shirts.Dance tickets.

A copy of The Classic.Other answers included a picture of

the cafetorium, suggested by sopho­

more Sharon Politis and Marni Suss­

man; M&M's and Blowpops, sug­

gested by sophomores Christine D'An­drea, Terez Czap, Kara Tubridy, and

Isabel Cuervo; and a Gap bag , sug­

gested by sophomores Veronika

Zelinski and Stephanie Strajcher. To

represent all collaterals, juniors Alona

Bach, Dee Mike, Allison Liescheidt,

Holly Sage, Carrie Spivack, and Amy

Schwach suggested a copy of the

"clipping thesis" be put in the capsule.

Teacher: 'This willbe 'a fUncollateral."Buy Ii ticket, everyone's going.

Students also thought of items to beirtc1uded in a time capsule that would

reflect life in Townsend Harris. Someof the most common answers were:

•

Townsend Harris High School at Queens College

Street."I just hope the building is goirtg to

be done by the time 1am a senior," said

freshman Michael Bergman,

The celebration held back at the

high school featured a birthday cake,

enrichment workshops irtstead ofclasses, and a photo collage made by

students. Those-in the building filledout time capsule entry forms , wroteletters to alumni, and designed aT­

shirt with the "top 20 lies atTownsend

Harris."

Sophomores Donna Weiss, Kalen

and Kara Tubridy, and Helen Xan­

thakys created the T-shirt. Some lies

listed were:

by Jennifer Teodoro tered in a drawing to determine the

"Who killed Dr. Largmann?" grand-prize winner. The grand-prize,

This murder mystery will be solved described by Coordinator of Student

on Spirit Day, October 31, when stu- Activities Lynne Greenfield as a"spec­dents submit their solutions and a _ tacular holiday candy basket," will be

grand-prize winner will be selected. . displayed in the lobby .. Participants will also determine the A student committee, comprised of

site of the crime and the weapon used, members of the Student Leadership

Clues will be posted in the lobby on class and Student Union officers, is or­

October 29,30,31. Only students in ganizing the investigation.

costume will be permitted to give in The Student Union is planning more

solutions.Students who guess correctly "spirit" activites for the week of No ­

in the three categories will receive a vember 12. These may include a pep

gift certificate for a free item at the rally and a dance, and special theme

Student Union store and will be en- . days are also being considered.

I didn't study for that test.There's a rapid dismissal to­day.It's only aminor change inyourprogram.

There are a lot of boys in my

class.THHS AT Queens College.

Murder staged to spark spirit'"'

Vol. 7, No.1, October, 1990

::::::~~::;;:m:$~~~"$l%~W~~~?:';!4;;;L::~tl ~:~:::~:::~~:: ~~~$~?~~":"~:..... i:::w ;1 ':r :DIRT flies as Principal Malcohn Largmann, Queens Borough President Claire Shulman, School Construction Authority headGeneral Charles, E. Williams , Assemblywoman Nettie Meyerson,and Junior President of Archon Dien Taylor, "breakground"for the New Townsend Harris High School building sites on the Queens College Campus.

The new Townsend Harris will be

the second high school built by the

School Construction Authority, and

will cost $70 million upon comple­

tion. The school will have seven

floors, two of which will be below

ground. The 170,OOO-scjuare-foot

building will contairt 16 classrooms,

a cafeteria, four computer rooms, twocomputer labs, a library, a med iacenter.an art studio and classroom ,

two science labs, and a kitchen. Other

features include an 8,OOO-square-foot

main gymnasiumand a2,OOO-square­

foot auxiliary gym, a 500-seat audi­

torium, a communication workshop,

an orchestra room, a speech work­shop , a suite of administrative ' of­

fices, and four teachers' lounges. It

will accommodate 997 students, will

be completely air-conditioned, and

fully accessible to the handicapped.

The main entrance of the building

will be located on Melbourne Ave­

nue, in order to avoid traffic on 149th

see p.3

"This ground-breaking is an af­

firmation of public education....The

school building will serve New York

City well into the 21st Century," said

Principal Malcolm Largmann in his

opening remarks.

Dien Taylor, in his address to the

students, said, "As we break ground

for ournew home, we must think about

the future. It is our hope that this monu­

ment to humanity will enrich our city

and help us to help others."

"This has really been a labor oflo ve," said Borough President

Shulman.SenatorStavisky compared

the struggle to obtain the building

with the Israelites ' search for the

promised land as told in the Book of

Exodus.

Assistant Principal Malcolm Ross­man, reacting to the ceremony, said,

"I think I now know what it's like for'

a woman to give birth, with all the

pain 'and frustration, to see some­

thing .so miraculous and wonderful

be born."

The event was a culmination of

student, faculty, alumni , and parentalefforts to get the site and settle on aconstructiondate. Both are now defi­nite, after many public hearings andstruggles with the neighborhood sur­

rounding the Queens College cam­pus. Actual construction is sched­

uled to commence this coming Sep- :

tember and is supposed to be com­

pleted by March of 1994. According

to Dr. Largmann, the possibility of

future problems with the new build­

ing due toNew York's financial troub­

les is slight."This is a great day for our commu­

nity and students because this will be

the most modem educational facilityin our city," said General Williams.

•

October 1990- Ground-breaking ceremony.

February 1989- Townsend Harris protests further potential delay in designand construction as published irt the Board Of Education's Five-YearCapital Budget Plan.

July 1990- Board of Estimates approves construction of the site on theQueens College Campus.

December 1987- John Bowne protests use of their farmland .for newTownsend Harris.

Landmark dates in struggle for new buildingSeptember 1984- Reopening of Townsend Harris High School.

r75-40 Parsons Boulevard. Flushing, NY 11366

by Sasha Antoszewski

The official ground-breaking cere ­

mony for the new Townsend Harris

High School facility took place Octo­

ber 4 on the Queens College campus

while studen ts unable to attend cele­

brated back at the high school build­

ing.

The event, which also commemo­

rated Founder 's Day and the 186th

birthday of the original Townsend

Harris High School , took place in a

tent on the site of the future Queens

College parking garage that must be

built before actual construction of thenew high school can begin. This is

being done because the new buildingwill displace the parking lot currentlyin use at the southwest comer of the

campus on Melbourne Avenue and

149th Street.

Due to the limited space and budget

provided by the sponsors' of the event,

the new School Construction Author­

ity, not all students,' teachers, and

alumni were able to be invited to the

ceremony.Workshops were held at the

high school to makesure all studentscontributed in some way to the cele ­bration.

At the ceremony, freshmen and in­

coming sophomores recited the

Ephebic Oath. Guest speakers included

Queens Borough President Claire

Shulman, Senator Leonard Stavisky,

Superintendent of Queens High

Schools Margaret Harrington, new

Queens Borough Board of Education

representative CarolGresser, President

of the Townsend Harris Alumni Asso­

ciation Morton Lisser, School Con­

struction Authority head General

Charles E. Williams, Senior Class

President Addie Male, and Junior

President of Archon Dien Taylor.

New building makesits mark on campus

,

Medieval Fairp.3

Meritsemi-Finalists

p.4

History of"Halloweenp.6

Boys' Bowlingp. 7

Girls' Swimmingp.8

-'

~---­I

Build spirit from within Letters to the editorUpperclassmen should've been involved in ceremony

.~n~11aSSiC~~~. ' . ha AntoJ'Uwskl ; Jonathan PerrySenior Edltors-In-Chlef Sas

Robyn Hermar

Readttl arc ,inViltd 10 S1,bmit Ietl,,"10 !be edit«. Letters .ho<,!<I toe pLacminMn. CoMn'. 1lUU1lx>x in the~I or­flOe' The Oasic: r=rves the rig!;1 10edit aD Iencn. Letters must includ~

name .aDd ofTlcial ct.,.. I'bmcs wm bewitllbdd UJ'Oft request,

Jessica Antoszewski

from this event when itwas they whoworked so hard to see this dream fi­nally realized. All the attending stu­dents appreciated the honor of beinginvolved with the ceremony but, at thesame time, most ofus understood howfrustrating it must have been for theupper classmen and graduates to haveworked so hard and then not be there towitness what their work finally ac­complished.

Best dance yetTo the Editor :

First of all, I've got to say that thKickoff Dance was the best dance I'vever been to. I danced so much thatwas sore for two days. I enjoyed everminute I was at the dance. I hope thrwhoever had apart in making the danewhat it was gets the deserved credit.

_ Sandra Rodrigu

school, that if it were not for them,there probably wouldn't have been aceremony to attend today.

It was those who came before us whowrote letters, lobbied, went to rallies,and fought to build a school that was fitto house the students and faculty ofTownsend Harris. That is why, al­though I was proud and honored to beinvolved in such a wonderful thing asthe ground-breaking for ournew build­ing, I found it appalling that this year's .sophomores, juniors, and seniors, aswell as recent graduates, were excluded

person to use it left a mess.I am sure I am not the only one who

is disgusted by the conditions of thebathrooms. I would like to know if thisis the way my wonderful comradesleave the bathroom at their homes.Many of us like to call T.H.H.S. oursecond home. So why don't we showa little respect for each other and our­selves, and put the towels in the wastebasket and flush the toilets?

Felicia Fyffe

Junicr Editor-in-Chicf: Jennifer DubowManaging Editor : Jordan M. DresslerNew. Editor: Randi KorobclnikAssisL News Editor. Jennifer MattucciFeature Editor: JordanM. DresslerAssist . Feature Editor. Tberese FergusonComputer Operations: Dalhung Duongsports Edito<: NUli Kodaman As.iIl. sports Editor. Tuchy ZaidmanPhotognphy Editor: ElizabethLoewy Art Editor: Pearl ChanBlain".. Manager: Stephanie Wolf ExcIwJge Editor: Stcphmic Strajchcr ,

PboIQgroahers : Lydia Brown, Ailin Chen, Christine Cheng, Ray Fink.lhddar (lackie) Hellman, Wendy Lck, Lindha Narvaez, Jennifer Negovenl, Corey Pale, Danielle1Tropea..Jessica Wong .AWm: lanuary Angele., Carol Chang, susan Chew, Cannon Cbu, Bikkci Law, Vinh Nguyen, Timothy Nolan, Maria Skrepetos, Teresa Tsc~: Christine Benedetto, Claudia Busto, Eugene Chan, Joanne Douvogiarmis, Ouis~ Farrier, Adam Farran. Rishona Fleishman, Mattbew Giloff, Stacey Gluck.,Zinalzracluhvili, Anastasia Kalamaru, Doug Klein. Cati!ha Marsh.Randi Miller. Ncftali Serrano, Jennifer Scrowtta, Ronnie Sussman. Donna Weiss. PamelaYamamotoCmtributing Senior Editor: Erica TsuiBusino.. Staff: Michel Alii.., Daren Bean, Moniqw:: Cole, Sabrina Falcone, Tracey Legat, Tanicdra McFadden, Tara Nal1l:r,lennifer Navana, Timothy Nolan,Marilyn Paulis, Nina reed, Roxanne Ryan, Jennifer Woog. Janice YeePrincipol: Dr. Malcolm Largmann Advisor: lisa Cowen

A~ 1 .•

To the Editor:I would like to call to your attention

the condition of the bathrooms on thefirst floor and in the basement. Theyare a mess. I am pointing a "shame onyou" finger at my peers. I have wit­nessed several of them literally leav­ing paper towels on the sink. Apartfrom the towels allover the place,there is also a much a worse problem.The toilets are continuously left un­flushed. It is very disturbing to go touse the bathroom and find that the last

Awaiting arrival of desired new buildingTo the Editor: wall to wall students, it was probably

I am very happy that the construe- invented here. During the time we gettion of Townsend Harris High School to our next class and at the end of theat Queens College has been approved. day, you literally have to fight yourEveryone has worked hard to achieve way through the halls. When we havethis goal and it is finally going to this new school, I believe that many ofhappen. these faults will be corrected.

I think that this new school will We are ecstatic that a new schoolsolve many problems that we face in facility will be constructed to solve theour current school. Here, we have ven- exisiting problems we now encounter,tilation problems. Some windows are All the rallying and petitioning wasnot able to open so the rooms are stuffy. worth it since the construction ofThen, there are windows that are hard Townsend Harris High School atto close, making the room very cold. Queens College will be a reality.Another problem in this school is the Warren Sabinohallways. If there is such a thing as

Bathrooms defiled by girls' litter Alumnus praisesClassicTo the Editor:

I have just received a copy of theJune issue and want to congratulateyou on the quality of the newspaper asto content, excellence of the writingand make-up, and the interesting mate­rial you presented: I graduated in June1927 and 'was an'editor ofour THHStadium (also our advertising man ­ager) but our paper didn't bear com­parison with The Classie, a much bet­ter paper in every respect.

Freshmen feel accepted by warm welcome ,Robert A.Newburger, M.D.

To the Editor: " we were accepted right from the begin- Stolen bus passesI'm a freshman and I just wanted to ning. Upper classmen served as our To the Editor,

tell y~)J how lu uch I appreciate the mentors, to help ~ get to know the I would like to write toyou about ansophomores ', "juniors' and seniors' school, and now they're our friends. issue very important to Townsend;kindness, andgenerosityjowards the Ther~ was no "Freshman.Friday",and , Harr~s student~. Thing~ a:~ ~e~.? ,~toinew freshman class this year. the upper classmen don't tease and len nght outside of school. About a

I am sure that we did not expect this make fun of the freshmen. week ago, two of my friends had theJkind of treatment. In other schools, the I'm sure I speak for all ninth graders, bus passes stolen. They were waitingninth graders are like outcasts in the when I say, "Thank you Townsend for the Q25/34 (which almost every­beginning. Towards the middle, the Harris." We will try our best to make body takes) when somebody ran byrest of the school usually gets used to this school proud. ~d grabbed a bus pass. Less than 20them. However, in Townsend Harris Anna Schinco minutes later, someone else just

grabbed my other friend's pass andran.

I think Townsend Harr is student!should be warned of this...and waterout for it.

To the Editor:Today, the freshmen and incoming

sophomores, along with other privi­leged guests, attended the ground­breaking ceremony for the newTownsend Harris High School. I thinkthat being astudentofTownsendHarrisHigh School is really something to beproud of. The freshmen and incomingsophomores are part of a great tradi­tion that goes back to the time my sisterwas a member of the first graduatingclass in 1988, It occurred to me, as we

• were preparing for the ceremony in

The groundbreaking ceremony was not only a landmark on the roadleading towards our new building but was also a source of inspiration, foralong with it came a surge of school spirit.

From the February 1989 rally at Jamaica High School to this summer'shearing at City Hall, Townsend Harris students have always felt com­pelled to fight for a home on the Queens College Campus, even though,most likely, none of us will ever walk into it as high school students. It'sgreat that something like the new building canbring forth so much feelingfrom the student body. However, it's sad to 'say this is the only thing thatreally does the job for this generation of Townsend Harris students.

The first generation that came to the "new" ToWnsend Harris attendedschool under adverse conditions. These classes had no books, no desks,few chairs, and little of anything else. They took a chance by coming toTownsend Harris. Back then it couldn't call itself a National School ofExcellence; in fact, the school had yet to establish its reputation. Despitethe lack of school supplies and difficult learning conditions, these stu­dents had tremendous school spirit, a pioneer spirit that was created fromwithin themselves and within the walls of the "shoebox" we have now.

When the first few classes graduated, their fervor and love for theirschool left with them. At that time the students were a coherent group.They worked with one another towards a common goal, bringing life toTownsend Harris and making it a school they enjoyed attending.

Now, most people just seem to care about making the grade and gettinginto a good college. The focus of students has been increasingly directedinwards. Working to benefit your education is understandable, but equallyimportant is having an enriching high school experience filled withmemories ofyourclass as a whole and not justyour small group of friends.'

Changes must be made in order to revivify the school spirit that onceexisted among Harrisites. ;Nowhere is it written that once in the newbuilding, Harrisiteswill suffuse it with school spirit. Freshmen and,incoming ,sophomores follow the lead of the upperclassmen. If the new ,students see that nobody has school .spirit, they won'thave.any either.That is why it is imperative to work towards establishing a,s~ns~of sch~l. . ~ - '. ' , ..pride now so that we will have a tradition to pass on to those classes whichwill be in the new building.

It takes a lot of work to create school spirit and this work should beshared by each individual at Townsend Harris . What better way is th~rt;,

to start than Halloween? In the past teachers and students have usedHalloween as a chance to express their creativity and individuality bywearing something-out of the ordinary. Dressing in costume adds spice to'the day and gives us agood excuse to laugh atour teachers and classmates.The more people participate, the more they enjoy themselves and the com­radery that they sense in the air.Ifeveryone put in as much effort into building school spirit as was shownwhen fighting for the new building, the apathy and self-involvementpresent in Townsend Harris would almost cease to exist. Right now, it'sup to the student body and teachers to stop complaining and startchanging.

We all know that the Townsend Harris senior year spent on the QueensCollege Campus is one of the greatest opportunities this school has tooffer. We get free college credits, exposure to college life, and finally, abit of freedom . At last those three years of collaterals, midterms, and finalsare all going to payoff. Unless, of course, seniors fail to take advantageof this special opportunity.

With a programas experimental as the senior "Bridge Year," there hasto be some drawbacks, One is our tendency to forget we're high school 'seniors. Suddenly, we've been thrust in the middle of a college campus,with no more principal, teachers, or adminstrators to watch our everymove. We are truly in charge of our academic careers. But without any"guardians," seniors have been known to make mistakes, mistakes withlong-term consequences.

One of the most obvious is cutting. Seniors have been failed inindividual classes for their outstanding absentee record . The guidancecounselors say that more and more employers ask for high school as wellas college records. They explained that a company won't offer ajob tosomeone with so many absences, simply because it makes the person lookunreliable.

"Senoritis" can also lead to a severe drop in grades. Seniors might findit easy to procrastinate and not work as hard, but this too has causedproblems. A graduate from the class of 1990 received a letter fromColumbia Universtiy, the college the student was planning to attend, Thestudent had already been accepted, but after receiving the final transcripts

, and noticing a decrease in grades, the college wanted a letter from thestudent giving an explanation for the decline in performance. Unless thestudent replied with a satisfactory excuse, the acceptance would havebeen withdrawn. .

All ofthis isn't to put seniors down. In fact, they should be commendedfor their adjustment to the rigorous program Townsend Harris offers. Butthey should avoid the temptation to cut classes and comers when no oneis keeping after them. Seniors should take advantage of the Bridge Year,and not waste all their previous hard work with carelessness. They alsoshouldn't forget that mistakes can coIlle back to haunt them.

Seniors burning bridges

......-j

Fight for new building proves successfulby Randi Korobelnik

Ground-breaking Day on October 4marked the culmination of six years ofextensive efforts to find a new homefor Townsend Harris on the QueensCollege campus. Many obstacles hadthreatened the building's construction,including disagreement on proposedlocations. delayed scheduling anddesign, and strong community protest.

The final hurdle was overcome July19 when the Board Of Estimate unani­mously approved the Melbourne Ave­nue site at a City Hall public hearing.Approximatelyseventy-fiveTownsendHarris supporters including parents,staff members, students and alumnigathered at City Hall to fight a commu­nity protest which threatened to delayground-breaking at the projectedQueens College site. Waiting forTownsend Harris to come up on theagenda, Principal Malcolm Largmanncommented. "We have faced so manyhurdles in the past that this is justanother one wehave to overcome. From

I . " , . . . ~ . " . -,' .

dayone, 6bstaCl~~ have beenplaced inour lpath'faiidw~;;';e always been ableto thrive onihem. I expect us to pre­vail."

Many speakers shared their feelingsthroughout the two-hour public hear­ing. Among the proponents for the

Melbourne Avenue site was IraPalestin, a ninety-year-old retired at­torney and former member of the CityCouncil who is a Harris alumnus of theclass of 1915.

State Supreme Court Justice Ken­neth Shorter, a 1930 graduate, spokeofhow he would never forget the namesof his former classmates who sat in his'row during his third year Latin class.Those names included Nobel Prize­winning Jonas Salk, who discoveredthe polio vaccine, best-selling authorWilliam Styron, famed actor of the1940's and 1950~s Cornell Wilde, andHerman Wouk, author of War andRemembrance. City CouncilmanRobert Dryfoos spoke on behalf ofhislate father who was a Townsend Harrisgraduate.

At the Board of Estimate hearing,opponents expressed concern about thenumber ofparking spots that would belost in Queens College Parking Lot 6 ifthe new building should find its homethere. Queens Borough PresidentClaireShulman and the School ConstructionAuthority assured membersofthe com­munity that any parking spaces lost

due to the construction of the buildingwould be replaced with a two-storyparking garage. The garage will bebuilt on part of the college' s athletic

field and will hold approximately 700automobiles. Mrs. Shulman said, "We 'have tried to mitigate as much as wecan the impacton the surroundingcom­munity." The building of the garage isexpected to be completed before theconstruction of the high school beginsin 1992.

In an interview with The Classic onJuly 19, community member TessieSehonfeld explained, "We oppose thebuilding of the school because the areai~ much too congested. We have abouteight schools in the radius of threeblocks and by putting another schoolthere, the area will be further con­gested and there will be fewer parkingspaces for the students and the mem­bers of the community."

Jessica Wolff, a resident of a co-opapartment complex across the streetfrom the site. addressed the membersof the board, asking how a construc­tion site could be placed at the edge ofa "quiet community." She expressedconcern about the additional noise thatwould plague the area and affect theentire community.

Other community concerns includedincreased air pollution from cons!!Uc~

tion fumes and safety problems,..pai~

ticularly for the children of PublicSchool 219, locatedon.MainStreet be-. . . :~ .

tween the Long Island Expressway andMelbourne Avenue.

According to The DailyNews (Octo­ber 1, 1990), representatives of theBoard Of Education and The SchoolConstruction Authority met last monthwith residents of the community toresolve community concerns.

The lengthy battle for the new build­ing can be dated back to December,1987, when the original recommendedsite was protested by JohnBowne HighSchool. The protests came followingthe announcement that farmland util­ized by Bowne's Agriculture Educa­tion Program would be used for thenew Townsend Harris. After threemonths of investigation. the currentsite at 149 Street and Melbourne Ave­nue was selected.

Further problems surfaced inFebruary, 1989, when a CapitalBudget Plan issued by the Board OfEducation threatened to again delayconstruction of the new TownsendHarris. The plan allegedly called forthe design of the buildingto begin in1992 with constructioncommencingin 1994; 'as opposed to the earlierpromised 1989~1991'dates. At a ' ;:"public hearing on the Capital BudgetPlan.Townsend Hams'stageda d~m-'oristrationto protest the delay.~ ., " , :

HundrCds of students who wouldnever get to use the new buildingdemonstrated at the hearing, whichended with an announcement byPresident Shulman that the delayedschedule published in the Five YearPlan did not apply to TownsendHarris .

The July 19.1990 Board Of Esti­mates hearing was held prior to a finalvote on the site. The board did notaddress the issue until 8:00 P.M, fivehours after most Townsend Harris sup­porters had arrived on the steps ofCityHall. Despite the late hearing start andthe 90-degree heat, speakers forTownsend Harris voiced optimism."We are going to win. We are not theloudest voices but we have the greatestmerit. This time merit will win out

. over loud voices." said alumnus HenryShereff. Charles Puglisi, Co -Presidentof the Parents-Teachers Association,said, "I think it is fitting and morallyright for the students of TownsendHarris to have a building they can calltheir own. I 'think it's about- time thatwe start doingthings to support the factthat-the children are our future.":

"I'Il be really happy when i see thenew building built. This is what all thegraduates have been waitingfor," com­mented 1988 'alufnna Julie Chan,

Global History .classes• T

turn back ti me

CARDBOARD cut-outtransforms studentto medieval princess. JESTER entertains at Medieval Fair.

odor in the library which was causedby the tarring of-the _TooLou'"ide,__many students said they had a goodtime. "It's a great fair because youcan eat food, get married, joust, andhave a juggler entertain you all atonce," explained sophomore SohiniChowdhurry.

a child from the medieval ~ra.

"The food was awesome. They hadrice pudding, custard, egg noodleswith cheese, oatmeal cookies, bis­cuits, and pita bread," said AnnaLaghezza, sophomore. "Thebaklavahis delicious," stated self-designatedfood critic of the fair, sophomoreDiana Stametelatos.

Despite the temperature and the bad

"We can accomplish -in this fairwhat we can'taccomplish in a weekof classes, a genuine feeling formedieval European life," said Dr.Manson.

American History teacher NancyLeib was surprised at the variety ofdisplays at the fair. "All the projects,were imaginative, creative, and welldone ....I didri' t know they gambled inthe Middle Ages," she said. For a feeof35 cents each, students could posefor Polaroid snapshots as they stoodbehind headless cardboard manne­quins of a princess and a crusader."This project gave people a-way toremeber the fair forever," stated Sta­cey Hollander, sophomore.

Many forms of entertainment werepresented at the fair, including chess,bobbing for apples, jousting, andjuggling. as demonstrated by sopho­more Matt Mandell. A few groupscreated their own board games suchas "Meeting OfThe Medieval Minds,"which was inspired by Triv ial Pursuitand Parchese. In addition, a gamedealing with the Crusades was de­signed with the map of Europe as itsboard.

One committee created a churchsetting with sophomore Chris Dudindressed as a priest. He performedmarriages, communions, and funer­als. "The church protected the weak ,.and stood for peace and love, " saidFather Chris.

Some students left their modemclothes behind and transformed theirdress into that of medieval people.Sophomore Donna Weiss was a mer­chant's wife, and wore a long gown

with especially wide sleeves that weretypical of the sleeve style of the time .Otherstudents dressed up in costumesof a medieval maiden, a jouster, and

Principal Bernice Horowitz. and li­brarian Valerie Billy. Students in theGlobal History 3 classes who are cur­rently studying medieval times wererequired to prepare a presentation onsuch topics as medieval arts, archi­tecture, religion, morals, food. cloth­ing.jousting, chivalry and the deadlyBubonic plague, spread by rats dur­ing the 14th century.

c::~g

CQ

'":03e-,~

9.8""

by Mat~ GilgoffPlague-carrying rats •.a witchcraft

comedy, jugglers, jesters, and pheas­ant stew: all of these and more werepart of the "educational" TownsendHarris Medieval Fair held in the li­brary on October 17.

The fair was coordinated by GlobalHistory teachers Michael Manson,Paul Stessel, Mark Soffer, Assistant

-~----------------------

4 Theel.sale

October nw

1.1

finalists appreciate their recognition colleges they attend and in their .ca-and express their feelings openly. reers.""It's an honor," stated Elizabeth. "We The Merit scholarship programs as-

were the only -three in Queens." sess competitors on the basis of theKristin agreed. She said, "Now I'm ex- PSAT and SAT scores, and a require d

cited . I want to find out who does win essay the students write about them­

the scholarships.WhetherIdo or don't, selves . Nationwide, there are 15,000'I' ll still feel honored that I rece ived semifinalists who are competing for

this recognition ." 6,000 scholarships. Winners will rep-

Felice feels that this lionor gives her resent one- half of one-percent of all"an incentive to work harder and to do the seniors ineach state .even better." She calls it "a good expe- Commended students in the Merit

rience because in a way it boosts your program are Sherr i Anderson, Monika

self-confidence." Bogal, Debra Bonsaing, Patricia Ce-"I hope I am a finalist," Nina com- ger, Mariss aGluck, JeanneGrathwohl ,

mented. After saying that it would help Jully Hong, Nuri Kodaman, Jodie

herincollege,shejokinglyadded,"And Lasoff, Jacqueline Loeb, Mary M<:I'Il be able to ask my parents for any- Carthy, Melissa Paolini, Lisa Spardel,

thing I want ." and Tally Wiener.Dr. Paul Vicino, college adviser, Achievement Program participants

commented on the winners' capabili- commended to colleges are Alyshaties. He said, "They have very great Cassis , Crystal Gant, Celena Green ,academic ' abilities and potential. I France~ca Momplaisir, and Marsha

.. . , ~, _ . • >':. "" ·:-· ~ ':. i~ ;\ '- f v:Lf': ;,4\ ';: -" ';,,·.~

imagine they will do very well in the , SCIpIO. , " ,' ",~ :, ..•,', ., ",. ~ " { ', :. ,. ;- ;" ."', . ' ' ' .

future through setting up farms or suit- help those who. are less fortunate - children, candles' were lit. This wasable working conditions. locally and in the world." , one of several summit meetings held

Ingrid said she became involved in in New York on th'etopic. Many digni-

the Hunger Projectwhen she found out "The facts about world taries attended the vigil, including

about it from biology teacher Odile h ' re'sad'and President George Bush.Garcia at a Save The Children meet- unger a "I think it is an important issue be-

ing. Mrs; Garcia said she was intro- someone-has to do cause we wanrio get the attention

duced to the Hunger Project when "a something about needed from world leaders and the

reee~t alurnnu~ of Townsen~ Harri.s, th . " ' general public," , ~aid Junio~ StudentMartme Guerrier, and a senior, Enc em" Government President Jeanie Reyes,Wiener, shared with us a videotape who attended the vigil.

[put out by the Hunger Project] en- "[Being involved in YEH is] a lot of "If indeed the children are our future,titled 'Famine and Chronic Hunger: a work and a lot of responsibility. The and they are, we need to re-evaluatelife and death distinction.' St~dents facts about world hunger ate sad and our priorities, our policies, our prin­volunteered after the viewing and someone has to do something about ciples, so thatwe, all of us, have thejoined the New York City-based them," said Ingrid. same opportunity to 'grow,''' said Mrs.

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·by Pearl Chan ,. fall.": ' "I'm very impressed with the stu­".j A deluge, of blue program-change ' Since teachers are not contractually dents in that they have adjusted veryslips flooded the halls of Townsend <bound to-teachmore than 34 students, nicely to their new programs," Mrs .Harris for weeks after the beginning of equalization aims to balance out the Rotter commented. "When they do get.the school year. Students and teachers number of students in each class. Nev- a change, their concern is that they arealike have been wondering why there ertheless, there'are still too many stu- going to miss work, but the teacherswas such a profusion of confusion. dents in the school. Additional classes are pretty cooperative in helping them

'The reason why there seems to be cannot be created to solve the over- to adjust. They try to make the changeso many program changes is that w e crowding problem due to the lack of less painfu l for the students."took in approximately 45 more stu- available classrooms. "Weare using Sophomore Erica Eisenstein com­dents than were in the building last the library four periods in the day, and plained, "Program changes are con­year," explained Arthur Boulanger, the we are using the cafetor ium six periods fusing . Just when you get used to aProgram Coordinator.Since then, about in the day," said Mr . Boulanger. schedule, they change your teachers30 incoming students decided to go to Additional problems have occurred around and separate you from all yourother schools or could no t come to because the computer scanner some- friends." Susan Cho, a junior, said, "ITownsend Harris for other reasons. times misreads the program bub- appreciate the fact that they try to doHowever, since schedules are set up in , blesheets, resulting in incorrect level their best, but sometimes it gets frus­August based on the number of antici- placement. Although this occurs most trating because we have to miss days ofpated attending students, programs often in math or language courses, classes even when we 're in 'school.'have tobecorrected in September based freshman Zhi Wang was accidentally Because theprograms are mteicon­on the actual number of students who advanced a level in Global History . nected, achange in one student's sched­decide to attend the school. "When I got used to Global 3, they put ule can set offa chain reaction that will

"Summer school can affect the pro- me back into Global 1. I had to start affect other students' schedules. Mr.gram changes . Even new ninth graders making new friends and catch up with Boulanger compared the program

• , and new tenth graders attend summer the one week of work that I missed. changes to "one of those complicatedschool,"said guidance counselor Susan And I almost failed the test today!" he Chinese puzzles . If you push one pieceRotter. If the school is not aware of the exclaimed. This type of program to make it fit, it sticks out on the otherstudents' summerstudies, they may be changehappens to roughly 25 students side."placed in the wrong level classes in the in 200.

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Light shines for fightingworld hunger

by Stephanie Strajcher and Jennifer ton on September 27. Dignitar iesdedi­

Mattucci cated to the cause of ending hungerStarving children, domestic hunger, spoke andreceived awards at the cere-

'~ and homelessness are Onlya few of the mony . Speakers included Generalproblems which students involved in Olusegun Obasanjo, former .head ofYouth Ending Hunger (YEH) have state of Nigeria, and Dr. Esther Asuataken steps to diminish. The Candle- Ocloo, the founder of the Hunger Proj­light Vigil at the United Nations build- eet. The Most Reverend Desmond M.

ing on September 23 and the Africa Tutu, who won the Nobel Peace Prize

Prize For Leadership For The Sustain- in 1984, also spoke for ending world

able End Of Hunger on September 27 hunger.. as did Andrew Young, theare two of the recent events in which mayor of Atlanta, Georgia.

Townsend Harris students have par- The Hunger Project, which is a divi­

ticipated . sion of UNICEF, works to help de-Harriet Vamvouris, senior, Beverly crease the world hunger problem

Leano, junior. .and IngridLemey, so- through getting "people together to

phomore, as well as students from all give money whichhelps in giving poorover the world and about 70 .world people opportunity," said Ingridleaders, attended the awards dinner for, Lemmey. This aidesmany in -Africa,

the Africa Prize at the New York Hil- notonly.to be fed, but to.improve their

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Walkathons'spirit

center on 164 Street, more than a - h- M-tR in doesn't dampen h~ndredpeoplesetoutontheirq~estto Senlors ac leve erlal raise money for those who are stricken

- f- I- t t twith Cerebral Palsy. _ __

Led by a marching band and clowns, •SemI Ina ISS a usthe group proceeded to Kissena Park. by Erica Tsui

by Doug Klein The participants had an option ofhik- Four Townsend Harris seniors have"Most of us were put on this earth ing either 8 or 20 kilometers, and spon- achieved semifinalist standing in two

, healthy.and it is only fair that we help sors paid per kilometer. After walking nationalscholarship competitions.those who are less fortunate ," said aroundthepark,almosteveryonetrav- Nina Brooks, Kristin Fassler, and

Captain Lou Albano, profess ional eled back to the UCPQ building for a Elizabeth Loewy are the only threewrestler and television celebri ty, in an party where food and drinks, were students in Queens to receive semifi­

exclusive interview with The Classic. served . Dry T-shirts and prizes were naliststatusintheNationalMeritSchol­

Mr. Albano w~ the chairman of the given to participants .Junior Pearl Chan arship Program. Felice Bowen alsowalkathon fundraiser for victims of won a raffle and received a walkman. was awarded semifinalist standing inCerebral Palsy. The charity drive was FM radio station, ZIOO, (WHTZ) theNationalAchievementScholarshipheld on Saturday,'October 13, at 8:30 showed up and also gave out prizes. Program for Outstanding Negro Stu-

A.M. "Even though it rained, I liked the dents.

People of all ages arrived at the walkathon because it showed that The winners all expressed surprise

United Cerebral Palsy ofQueens head- people really care about another per- at learning about their achievement.

quarters in Jamaic a. Despite the turbu- son's difficulties," said sophomore "A lot of times you fill out these appli­

lent weather, Townsend Harris stu- Karen Hsieh. Captain Lou expressed a -cations and you don't really think youdents came on their bicycles'andfeet to similar sentiment. "The fact that I am a are going to win, It doesn'thit you until

partake in the event. "I am very im- TV celebrity does not give me the right you do," said Felice.

pressed with the number of students to forget about those whose lives are Elizabeth had forgotten about the

from our school who came. Freshmen. not as good," he said. Junior Lauren competitionuntil she was notified. She.' sO'p~omores, juniors.~d even seniors ,Caiaccia said,' 1 thought it was excit- explained, "I didn't think I'd get this:~, : .a,ie:~~¥)'~: slUd: '~clIl?r(A4lQ.ser Odile ; 'jng:becaus~w\< ac;tually got to seethe far. I was shocked and amazed."

d;Irbia;: *h~~brg~ized ,th~·;;Vent' for '~pl~ ;J;e heli>e4:,i : ' -<'~ Regardless of their surprise, the semi-;' Towm endiH arris.-Statiinir'from 'the " .'J , f '"'_ " ... ". ~ " , 0 -

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Freshman headdress sparks interest

recognized nationallyPrincipal

~2co." '..:a>.>_1~

~

ning, mountain hiki!!g and doing re­search on different science topics .

New music teacher Daniel Orv is

strives for perfection from his students

in music. As an accordion pla yer and

pianist, he learned that "second best

does not survive in the music busi­

ness.""If you are musician, you must also

be a perfectionist," said Mr. Orvis.

He attended Berklee College of

Music in Boston with some musicians

who are now famous.One such bud­

ding celebrity was Earl Klug, a well­

known jazz guitarist who has played

with George Benson. In his spare time,

Mr. Orvis likes to fish and play base­

ball.Returning from sabbatical leave are

history teacherMyron Moskowitzand

Japanese teacher, Michael Rubin.

Changes in faculty positions include

English teacher Lynne Greenfield as

the new Coordinator of Student Ac­

tivities, mathematics teacher Linda

Mandell as the new treasurer, andhis­tory teacher Michael Manson as the

acting dean: Dr. Manson is filling in

for WandaNix. who is on leave this

term.

Townsend Harris standards and tradi- put together ~ program focusing on the

tions.' Humanities and emphasizing the

An integral partofa Townsend Harris Ephebic Oath," Commented Assistant

student's life is the understanding and ' Principal Sheila Orner. "It was nice

carryingoutof the principles embraced that Dr. Largmann received recogni­

by the Ephebic Oath. An aspect of the tion outside ofNew York City, so that

oath Dr. Largmann considers most people across the country could learn

significant is the promise to enhance about him and the jobhe is doing,"said

the quality of school and community' AssistantPrincipalMalcolm Rossman.

life. t . "He has become a celebrity through-

,"I t was Dr. Largrriann's vision and out the educational system."

leadership that enabled the facultytom.~_

.'

Missouri,California,Texas, Nebraska,

Massachusetts, and Oklahoma.

Dr. Largmannconsiders this achieve­

ment an honor for the entire school. "1

thank Townsend Harris' students and

staff for their support in helping to

establish traditions of excellence in

academic and community concerns,"

said Dr. Largmann. "The continuing

concern facing Townsend Harris is to

insure that all new teachers and new

stud~nts a.c~ept and reinforce

the month of Ramadan. She refrains

from all food and drink dur ing the day­

light hours. 'This is done to show you

how poor people feel and encourage

you to help them ," Maryum explained.

"The day after the fast is over, God

congratulates you on doing a good job

by allowing you a day offestivities and

feasting." This is a major holiday cele­

brated by Maryum.

The fifth pillar is Hajj, a pilgrimage ••

to Mecca. Maryum hasn't gone yet but

she hopes to go soon.

Maryum doesn 't celebrate many

Americanholidays. She does celebrate

Thanksgiving by getting a turkey.However, her family "doesn't really

go into it," she said. There is also no

emphasis on birthdays. 'This is be­

cause God said not to waste money,"

she explained. "There is usually a cake

but it's really no big deal."

In her spare time, Maryum likes to

read mystery books. Her favorite au­thor is Agatha Christie. She likes to'go

shopping for books, food, and sweat- ,, __

ers. She also likes new ~a~e·'music. MARYUM KHWAJA"sitS, ~earing't~e :headdress "w~ich1:Jas drawnHer favorite groups include J]2,and SO much attention.Erasure. " , Maryum has already made ., withherwithoutbeinguncomfortable.' cellent resource person. She lives the

friends at T'Ownsend Harris who un- I 'm glad I mether because she is inter" -Islamic life. ,S he knows more about

derstand about her religion and,don't ~t#J.g and ni~e. ~.:: " ,, ' .. • .: Islam than I do. She is a valuable con­

put any social pressures on her. On~of . Pau(Stes'~el, Maryum's Global His- tribution to my class."

these friends, Janet Glaubman.rfeels tory teacher, said. i''Maryum is an ex-

~a~:~~~~:e:i~;e::n~;Ir:~i~~ ~iil~~.$1~!'I~B1i.Mifu'~il:f!tfilt1.tl:w.~I.II}\~1riWSouth America, Australia, Japan,China.Alaska, the Arctic and Europe.

Ad el Kodamani , the new Physics,Chemistry and Earth Science teacher,

ond grade at College Point and came to the United States to escape the

Woodhaven and the Townsend Harris civil war in Lebanonand continued his

senior humanities seminar at Queens education here. He attended North

College. "I want students to become Carolina State University and CUNY

aware of their unique contribution to Graduate Center. "1have a good back­

their classmates as well as society," ground in Chemistry because I've

she said. In her spare time, Mrs . Wal- worked with one of the best, Dr. N.L.

lace enjoys needlework and quilting ~ Yang, " saidMr. Kodamani. "Dr. Yang

and going to plays. Her favorite play is , gave me a chance to learn chemistry

Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond better and I hope to do the same for theRostand. students here."

"I am determined to commit myself Mr. Kodamani says he is impressed

to education," said history teacher with the way Townsend Harris stu­

Nancy Leib. "I want to help students dents function. "They are serious about

achievetheirfullpotentials."Mrs. Leib getting a good education," he said.

worked at August Martin High School 'The students appreciate good teach­

in Rockaway before coming to ers and they give me a chance to do my

Townsend Harris. "Wherever I am, I job." He worked at Paul Robeson High

want students to have a better under- School in Brooklyn for two years. His

standing ofeachother," she said. Most dream and goal is "to work with stu­

of all, I want students to learn from dentsfrommanydifferentbackgrounds

each other - not just from me." and discuss with them the topics of

Traveling around the world is one of ' science related to daily life." In hisMrs. Leib's hobbies. She has visited spare time, Mr. Kodamanienjoysrun-

hallsflUfaces

United States Department' of Educa­

tion. The ability of a principal to

motivate their staff, to encourage their

students, school-communityrelations,

and to institute special programs, were

were factors considered by the contest

committee. The list of candidates was

cut to 80. Later, ten fmalists were

named from public,schools of all gradesacross America, Dr. Largrnann was

the o~y, prin~ipal from New York. The

other principals repre~en~e~ Hawaii,

Global History is taught.

In past years, both classmates and

strangers have made fun ofher cultural

dress. Strangers still do.

"They call me names like Gandhi

and Mother Teresa," she said. 'They

make me angry because they don 't

even understand why I wear it." Ma ­

ryum says that she is glad when people

ask her about her headdress because it

gives her achance to make them under­

stand.Maryum explained that her religion,

Islam, requires her to wear the head­

dress, which is worn by females "to

show a modest look. The headdress

insures that a prospective mate loves

me for my personality and not my

looks," she said. "It also protects me

from violence."

Maryum's religion also prohibits her

from wearing shorts. At TownsendHarris, the physical education classes

are required to wear shorts as part of

their gym Uniform. Thanks to a paren­

tal note explaining the difficulty"Maryum is allowed towear sweatpants.

Maryum follows the five pillars of

Islam. The first pillar is saying the

shahada, 'There is no God but the one

God, and Mohammed is His prophet.'

The second pillar is sa/at, praying five .;

times .a day. The third pillar is zakat,almsgiving.

The fourth pillar is fasting during

Mrs. Rizzuto started writing at the

age of five for the famil y newspaper.

"I was taught ho w to read and write

before I went to school," said Mrs .

Rizzuto. She has written articles for

the New York Times, has appeared in

national publications, and worked as

an editor for a literary magazine based

in California. When she is not writingor teaching, Mrs. Rizzuto enjoys clas­

sical music and ballet. She is also a

serious student of the martial arts scri­ously.

"The person I admire the most is a

person who treats another with kind­

ness," said Georgette Wallace, an­

other new English teacher. "I want

students to act with kindness and hu­

manity towards each other."

A mother of two, Mrs. Wallace was

the PTA president of P.S. 62 for three

years. She was then encouraged by the

acting principal, Howard Becker, to

teach English. She has taught the sec-

faculty

by Therese Ferguson

You've seen her in the hallway, that

new girl wearing the white headdress.

You've probably wondered who she

is, where she comes from, and why shewears the headdress. Well, you don't

have to wonder anymore.

Her name is Maryum Khwaja. She is

fourteen years old and a freshman at

Townsend Harris.

Maryum, a Sunni Muslim, was born

in America, but she and her family

moved to Pakistan, her parents' home­

land, when she was in the secondgrade.

They made the move, Maryum said,

because her parents didn't want her to

get any "bad influences, such as greed

and disrespect for elders," from Amer­

ica. However, her father suffered se­

vere allergies in Pakistan and was

unable to work. So, in the seventh

grade, Maryum and her family moved

back to America.

Although it was much hotter in Paki­

stan, 'and America is more advancedtechnologicaily; Maryum' 'was' more

comfortable in Pakistan. 'Th~ peoplethere are my type," she said. 'There is

no barrier there. Here, you can't reallyget as close to anyone."

So far, Maryum likes it at Townsend

Harris . One of the main reasons is no

one makes fun ofher or calls her names

here . She feels this is because many .

different cultures are represented, and

by Adam Farron

Dr. Largmann was recognized last

spring by his peers as one of ten hon­

orees in the 1990 "Principal ofLeader­

ship" special recognition program

sponsored by the National Associa- ,

tions of Elementary and Secondary

School Principals.

Most of the administrators eligible

for this award were the principals of

the 119 schools named National

Schools of Excellence in 1989 by the

by Pamela Yamamoto

Along with each new school year

comes a set of' new teachers and a

change in positions for some of the vet­

eran faculty members. The new addi­

tions include Helen Rizzuto, Georgette

Wallace, Nancy Leib, Adel Kodamani

an4 Daniel,QI:yis.

.Having.w ritten two volumes of po­etrycollections, Evening Sky on aIapa­

nese Screen andA Bird in Flight, whichwere later published, English teacher

Helen Rizzutocontinues to write along

with teaching students at Townsend

Harris High School and Hofstra Uni­

versity.

At Hofstra, she teaches her students

how to write novels, poetry, shqrt sto­

ries and articles, as well as how to get

them published. "I wantmy students toappreciate what is unique about them­

selves and learn the magic oflanguage,"said Mrs. Rizzuto. She has been teach­

ing for 25 years.

New

~-

Pop music censorship debate spllts societyby Jordan M. Dressler

The new Jane's Addiction album,

Ritual de 10 Habitual, bears on its

cover something that some call the

scariest thing to affect music in recent

times and others call a blessing to

parents and children alike .The item on

the cover, however. was not designed

by the group. It is a warning sticker

bearing the words "Explicit Lyrics ­

Parental Discretion Advised." And it

is emblematic of the debate now rag­

ing in the United States over the cen­

sorship of popular music.

One of the major blows to the music

industry's campaign for freedom of

speech came when a court in Broward

County. Florida recently ruled as ob­

scene the 2 Live Crew's album. As

Nasty As They Wanna Be. A record­

store owner was busted for selling the

album. and the members of the rap

group were arres ted for performing the

banned ~ong~ at an "ad~lts only:' club.

After theFlorida ruling.judges in Texas

and South Carolina also ruled th~ al­

bum as obscene. "Although the mem­

bers of the 2 Live 'Crew have since

individuals who have succeeded ingetting the 2 LiveCrew banned in parts

orv. of the country.

Perhaps one of the most controver­

Sial episodes in this story involved

Irish songstress Sinead O'Connor.

O'Connor refused to perform at an

August 24 concert at the Garden State

Arts Center in Holmdel. New Jersey if

the Star-Spangled Banner was played

there. Specifically mentioning the

plight of the 2 Live Crew, she said that

she did not want her music to be asso­

ciated with a country which submits its

artists to censorship. The national an­

~em was ,not played and O'Connor

performed. but the Arts Center subse­

quently banned her from ever perform-.. . ~ .' .\

ing there again, Local radio station

WHTZrefused to play her music, while

young kids. The parental warning stick­

ers are justly on these albums, and ifthe government has to take the records

offtherack•...thenso be it," said Danny.

Senior Annette Artus makes a com­

promise between both arguments when ,

she says, "It's true that some songs arc

too heavy to be heard by young chil­

dren. and that's why the parental stick­

ers are there. but it is wrong for thegovernment to. take a record off the

shelves because it is obscene. That's

against the law." Many feel that the

censorship of music is against the First

Amendment, but others agree with the

Broward County judge and deny that

obscenity is protected by freedom of

expression.

The debate is far from over. While

the 2 Live Crew's album is banned in

Florida, the group played to a standing

ovation on the MTV Music Awards on

September 6, showing that the band

still has its suppo~~~r;:Thebattle lines

are drawn for this 'wa'r' ~f ~ords~vcrcensorship, and there will no doubt be

songs written about it - if it is legal to

do so.

n ..

Horrific historical happeninqs haunt Halloween

MApD declares: "Drunk Driving Kills!"

eggs at all people." said a junior boy

who preferredlo remain anonyriious.

"I think that bombing is partly destruc­

tive. but it also puts adventure in the

air." said Virni. "I would love to see the

bombers get egged."

These pranksters may find their

deeds funny, but others find that this

ruins the spirit of the holiday. Alexis

Joseph, a new student to the school,

said,"I try not to get bombed with eggs

on my way to school and .qn the way

home."

--.:---:=~-~ '>

--==~-

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films seems to be a common traditionon Halloween, one which may last

well into the night.

However, while these students are

innocently bobbing for apples (a tradi ­

tion which dates from the Middle

Ages), others are taking part in de­

structive crimes. For these people. Hal­

loween is a time of "bombing" friends,

pedestrians, houses, or cars with eggs

and shaving cream.

Monika Dabrowski, freshman, ad­

mits. "I like bombing all my friends."

She also takes her brother and sister

trick-or-treating. "I will be throwing

lated tragedies from ever happening.

They assist victims and raise public

awareness. "Ooh," was a typical re­

sponse given by students when they

viewed dead victims their own age that

were crushed to death in automobile

accidents .

MADD insists on showing images as

graphic as these to prove their point.

Their point is that regretting what one

does after the accident is not enough,

yet taking precautions necessary for

the accident to nev er have occurred is:

Since Townsend Harris opened.

masquerading has become a tradition

here too, with students. teachers. and

administrators coming to school in cos­

tume. Last year, science teachers Odile

Garcia and Susan Appel dressed up as

the elements chlorophyll and alumi­

num. complete with chemical formu- ,

las. while Global History teacher John

Hynes pretended to be a bag lady.

Principal Malcolm Largmarm also got

into the spirit, wearing the mask of

Apollo.

"Every year one of my friends has a

costume party and some years we even

go trick-or treating." said freshman

Vimi Govind. Other students have the

same idea. "I love to go trick-or-treat-

, ing because I'm a kid at heart," said

freshman Robyn Herman.

Ninth grader Siriboa Munroe spends

her holiday volunteering. "On Hal- ,

loween I go to my church and help out

for the Halloween party." she said.

They have a haunted house and also

watch horror movies. Viewing scary

drunk driving every 23 minutes. The

studentswere told that by the time they

finished watching the video, about two

lives would have been destroyed.

"Sentenced For Life" presented kids

speaking out on past experiences with

alcohol and alcoholics. They have lost

friends and/or family or crippled them­

selves for life either psychologically

or physically.

"The film made me realize that any­

thing can happen to anyone." said one

viewer.

MADD trie s to prevent alcohol-re-

Another source for this practice can

be found in Irish legend, and the cus­

tom arrived in America with Irish im­

migrants. ,They told the story of an

Irishman named Jack, a stingy drunk

who was driven from heaven and hell .

The Devil then gave him a lantern

made from a pumpkin. Jack suppos­

edly still wanders the earth. lantern in

hand. looking for a resting place.

The name Halloweeen derives from

"Allhallows" and " Hallowmass," both

old names for All Saints' Day, the Ro­

man Catholic feast day celebrated on

November 1.Hundreds of years ago, people who

represented lost souls would dress in

scary costumes and march through a

village in order to escort the ghosts of

the deceased from the town. The more

grotesque the cos tume, the more effec­

tive this ritual was. This tradition has

since been adopted by childrenin search

of candy and other goodies who mas­

querade as they go from house to house

saying "trick or treat."

by Jennifer Sorowitz

Every year at the end of October.

strange changes occur in t.!le kids and

teenagers of America. Around dusk.

they discard their normal. everyday

clothing for more colorful or perhaps

fiendish garb. They leave their homes

in search of the houses (jf strangers.

which are decorated with sculpted

orange vegetables. Ringing the door­

bells, they present the residents with an

ultimatum, and. in return, receive

candy. All of these practices are in the

name of Halloween. Where do these

traditions come from?

Some Halloween customs have

roots in ancient traditions. such as those

of the Druids, who were members of

an ancient religious order. The harvest

festival of the Druids was celebrated

on the eve ofOctober thirty -first. Celtic

Druids of northernBritain would light

fires in order to scare away the evil

spirits of winter. This tradition is now

expressed by placing lit candles injack­

o-lanterns.

by Zina Izraelashvili

The library ,was filled with lively

students who ~ever expected to leave

the room with so much gloom. Alice

Moscolo, a representative of MADD

(Mothers Against Drunk DriviI).g). '

caught everyone 's attention during

Enrichment October 12 as soon as she

placed the video. "Sentenced ForLife,"

into the VCR. The students were hit

with startling statistics about kids their

own age who are getting killed each

day due to drunk driving. According

to the film, one life is destroyed due to

~~~lilililili['lilililillilil!111IThe Classic

October I~~ 7

Ig '".

:=-

EYE EXAMINATIONSCONTACT LENSES

Rx FILLED

cont inuing to rise. We are very confi­dent. It's been a team effort all the way

and '¥e know it, " said Lenny , whobowled scores of 174 and 171 agains tAdams. Despite their confidence ,

they're still cautious."We can't start thinking of the play­

offs yet," said Ronnie. We mus t take

the next two, ~ame by game . If wedon' t, we 'll get tossed out of here .The

playofffactor, though, is in the back ofour minds. It's the biggest of incen­

tives and we want it bad ."

teacher Joseph Horn, take place four

times a week and always start with arun to Queens- College. Once at the

college, the 27-member team parti ci­pates in numerous runs around the

campus. "As ~e year goes on, prac­tices get easier and easier," stated teammember Carrie Hess, sophomore.

The season has just begun with 7

scheduled meets remaining. Accord­ing to Carr ie, "The team is very opti­mistic." Mr. Horn, who has coached

the team for six-consecutive years ,

thinks that this year 's group has very

good potential. "I feel that we stillhave a chance to finish in the top three

for the Queens Championship," statedMr. Horn. He also think that the "fresh­men and sophomore teams haee a

chance to finish in the top three of the.Queens Championship."

< .

' -

oned with is Mike, the Queens Indiv id­ual Bowling Champion of 1989, andjunior Ronnie Sussman, who has paced

the team with some outstanding ef­forts, including a 199game versus Van

Buren. Thegreates t improvement from

previous years seems to be with the B­

team, led by junior newcomers Vin­cent Donowski and .Lenny Moyger,

and members from last season, juniorKevin King and senior Jeffery Perez. .

"Now that we're making the clutch

spares and strikes in the critical ninthand tenth frames , our record is only

(718) 380 -7788

Boys' Varsity Bowlingshow promising future

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Girls' Varsity Volleyballdominates leaqueby Neftali Serrano didn't work. The Hawks sent them to

If there wereany doubts before, the showers, burying them with a 15-4there aren't any now. It's no secret that win for the set and game.

the Harris Hawks are the team to beat "We were pretty good, but wein the Queens A division. Posting up a could've done better," said seniorrelatively easy 15-8, 15-4 win against Angie Lam: "Like most teams, they

. Flushing High School, the Girls' Var- seem to play up to the caliber of theirsity Volleyball team continued their opponent," said new coach Dianedomination of their division, extend- Plusch. She observed that you might

ing their three-year winning streak to - see a great game or a very poorly23 straight games . played game from the team on any

Although not as consistent as last given day. She said she is still looking ,

year, the Girls ' Varsity Volleyball team for the zone in the middle, the zone of

has a 3-0 record, with victories over, consistent execution of basic skills ,

Cardozo, Bayside, and their most re- that they were locked into last year.

cent victim, Flushing High School. Playing with a 6-2 offense, which in­The Hawks played sloppily during the volves two setters and three frontline

first set as they searched for some spikers, the Hawks do not have the

rhythm. After gaining that rhythm late height advantage they enjoyed lastyearin the first set, they soon lost it again and must utilize more offensive play­

when the Flushing Red Devils called ers to vary their offense, an offensetime out with the score at 9-3. The Red which surrounds setter and captain Ra­

Devils managed five more points , but chel Ruisi. To offset the height loss,Harris still took the set 15-8. the Hawk 's now rely on quickness on

In the'secondset, Hams took charge the floor. This is a strateg y which may

with excellent serving from senior take time to learn.Wailani Sung, who ended the game - Despite their inconsistency, thewith 13service points, including seven Hawks are still the 'Oakland A's' of

straight. Most of Flushing's points their division. "I definitely expect tocame after Harris, with the game in win the Queens division," said Coachhand, made seve ral substitutions . Plusch, butshe hesitated to say that the

Again , the Red Devils tried to disrup t team would get past their quarterfinalHarris ' rhythm by calling a time-out finishofias tyear.Shedidsaythattheirwith the score at 6,-1. This time, it chances were good.

by Tzachy ZaidmanMike Lorello, team captain and an-"

chor bowler, unleashed a powerful. hook that smashed into the pocket. A

lone pin remained standing.TheBoys'Bowling Team playoff hopes now

hinged on a las t attempt by opponent

John Adams . A strikeby Adams wouldgive them a tie. The ball struck the

pins. ibut the seven pin did not fall .Now the ream still has a chance tomake the playoffs, as their record islocked in at an even 4-4. <,

The Hawks are now on a three-game

winning streak, thanks to a critical

tournament game win against VanBuren. This is the first time in team

. history that a tie-breaking victory and

a Van Buren defeat has occured. The

catalyst of this streak can be consid­ered Harris' A and B team's clean

sweep of Hillcrest in game six."We started a little slow after our

first win by losing the next three , butwe knew we were better than that, andwe began bowling like it. Noone wantsa repeat of the last two years,~o one,"

: i ,' .- ,-\ , ' ._I'j

said Mike with a grinafter Harris ' .

second tie-breaking victory against

Adams.

After last year's disappointing sea­son; this year the team has put it to­

gether . Leading an A-team to be reck-

I " I , ~ r.:'_t]11t~(j

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IJGirls' Cross Country crushes:~1M;:

IIcompetition{1f1J .WH by Rishona FleishmanW;jMf: And they 're off! The Girls ' Crosskt C ' d 'thlW!*ii ountry team s season starte WI aItt 1:5 mile run on September 26 at Cun-

[I I: nm~han: Park. .HM Nia Simmons, sophomore, fimshedI~ second in this ra<;e which consisted of:-~¢.-t>... - ~

W®.: 54 runners from various schools. In-,,p,,,,,. id Le h 1 ed7th);# 1 gn mmey, sop omore,pac;:.:.;.:.;-:::;:

~J~ Niki Ioannu, junior, finished 14th; andlTh1 Tracey Librie, junior, followed, plac-tlf.~l . . 44Th mg 15th. Competitors included run-:.....s:.~.

~tm. ners from Queens high schools such as$~ . .@i.% Forest Hills , Jamacia, and VanBuren.illn Since this first race, Nia has placed;.:'.:::r-:::: '}.~W first in two other 1.5 mile runs held on~~! October 3 and October 10 at Cunning-5""t£1 ham Park. For the 2.5 mile race at Van(ii~ Cortlandt, Park on October 6, Nia

:tlw placed third overall.:::;::::::..{ \

ti$ Practices, coached by mathematics. ~

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Girls' Swimming Makes Waves

"This was the first time in my 10

years ofcoaching that we've had ashot

at Bayside,' said Coach Jordan toNew­sday. "But the final relay was thekey...we'dbecndisqualifiedinourfirst .relay and if we had blown that one,they would have won the meet."

They team was also successful at the

Relay Camival. They won 8 out of 12

gold med als.

"We have a good future ahead ofus," said sophomore team member

Johanna Plavin. Although thirteen

players graduated last ye~, there are alot of stars to replace them, includ ingJennifer, Nicole, Lauren, and Kalen

Tubridy."We are going to win the Borough

Championship," said junior Debbie

Benik, expressing the team 's new­

found confidence.

I

by Ronnie Sussman "The Girls' Swim Team defeated

Bayside High School on October 12,winning the 4 x 100 relay and causingBayside's first loss in adual-meet in 18years. This third victory of the season,following the wins of Far Rockaway

and Grover Cleveland, is the team's

greatest accomplishment this year.

Corning off on 9-0 record last season,

the team, along with their coach, James

Jordan, has high expectations for this

season.Lori Ann Hom, Jennifer Cheswick,

. Lauren Wigo, and Nicole Kissag com­

pleted the Bayside relay in' 4:31.2 tohelp lead their team to a47-39 victory.

Wigo won the 200 individual med­ley and 100 backstroke, Kissag won

the 100 breaststroke and 500 freestyle,

and Cheswick won the 200 freestyleand the 100 butterfly.

IPhoto by Kalen TUbridy l £

LORI ANN HORN and LISAYING await their tum in a swmming relay . CI. ~::'-::'~

lM'111illl~11Ifili;,fll"l&:t~:m~":I~li:;jl~lll~tlrli :t:::~:: 8

Boys' Track runs .out of steam

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In their previous game, TownsendHarris defeated Jamaica to claim theirfirst victory of the season. "With hardwork, we could definitely get second[place]," said Mary Martin, freshman.

The team had a difficult time in theirfirst game, as they struggled againstand lost to Cardozo. Yet they all re­mained confident. .."J have a great, young team, and with

hard work and dedication, we shouldhave a great season," said Ms. Roth­stein .

~~..-.~,CO",.AC" "C"SE$ . .

DR. .MARC SAKOWOPTO....ET....T

by Doug Klein"It was a heartbreaking loss," said

Robin Rothstein, coach of the Girls'N Volleyball Team, "but they playedvery well," she added.The team lost to John Bowne, 16-14,

8-15, 15-13, as they saw their recorddrop to 1-2. "It was a cluse game, andwe almost pulled it off. !'vereally seena lot of improvement from last year'steam. Ms. Rothstein really knows whatshe's talking about," said sophomoreDonna Weiss, the team captain.

.~~t e'l'l: fUMINA"10_

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tt "I·•• lC__~AIQ)" ,.,I.! •• 'i~'. · , ~. N . Y. 11:16.,..... . .~....~.'.-.~j

JV Volleyball seeks brighter season

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to do our best," he added.In their first match at Cunningham

Park, the Harris team showed little dif­ficulty in manhandling Long IslandCity. Led by David, who placed sec­ond overall, the team included manyfreshmen who were participating intheir first official meet. "I'm surprisedat how well we did," said Dave . .

The team endured a rigorous trainingprogram leading up to their inauguralevent, often practicing four to five timesa week.

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stand how they're in our division,"said Coach Keith Hanson.

Despite their defeat, the team'smorale remainedhigh. "Itwas hard butit was worth it VanBuren was excel­lent and it made it tougher to do well,"said exhausted freshman David Eber."It was all right, butI'm disappointed.

We trained very hard to beat them,"said captain David Park. 'There willbe other times and there will be otherraces forus to win. We should all thankthe coach for giving us the inspiration

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by Doug KleinTheBoys' Cross-CountryTrack team

started offon the right "track" October4 with an easy win over Long IslandCity, but lost their second meet Octo­ber 9 to Martin VanBuren.

Van Buren defeated Harris in a 3.1mile race through the woods in Cun­ningham Park. Van Buren was obvi ­ously too hot for Townsend Han-is tohandle, with many of their runner~ ap­pearing to be twice the size of theHarris athletes! "I just don 't under-

by Ronnie Sussman "We have the confidence and skillThe Girls' Varsity Bowling Team that should pull us through the clutch

defeated Hillcrest, their biggest com- situations tohelp lead to another sue­petition last year, by a score of 612- cessful season," said coach Ellen431 in their first game of the season on Schwartz.

I .... I October 9. Top team players include juniors"We have a good, strong, consistent Shameka Brown, Alison D'Amico,

team and I think we will be a challenge Beverlie Leano, and Amy Schwach..to our competition," said team rnem- Brownhad a game with a score of184.ber Alison D'Amico . After a 6-2 rec- ' "We havethe talent and are going toord last year, there is a lot of enthusi- win it all," said Amy.asm this fall.