Noble Brigham ‘20 Students and faculty were shocked and upset by a recent incident where a student posted an image many considered racist on social media, sparking outrage. This has resulted in the student’s departure from Episcopal but has also created reckoning and conversations in the community. Some felt it was an overreaction and others felt the then-student was fairly disciplined. However, this episode was far from a “one-off.” Episcopal has a long and tangled racial history. During a Can Drive chapel skit in October, 2012, a student dressed up as “Canye” West by putting a printout of West’s face…
Author: TECHALERT
Maiah Islam ‘21 Imagine after a lengthy time of studying and preparing for the SAT, you finally arrive at the center to take the test only for the proctor to tell you your ID is invalid. This scenario can happen to EA students who try to use their school ID as a picture ID for a College Board exam. The College Board is no stranger to students at EA. Whether it be for AP exams, the SAT, or SAT Subject Tests, EA students will most likely interact with this institution at some point throughout their high school career. In order…
Noble Brigham ‘20 Avani Narula ‘21 Students and faculty at Episcopal continue to be concerned about an apparent epidemic of academic dishonesty. As a result, the EA community has been taking more steps to stop students from cheating. Zach Richards, dean for the class of ‘21, states, “the school has been proactive in addressing it. Teachers are more vigilant; students have had enough of cheating taking place and are taking action. If anything, I think we are going to start to see cheating decreasing.” Cheating incidents are addressed and solved in Disciplinary Council. A member of the disciplinary council, Louisa Baxter…
Noble Brigham ‘20 Avani Narula ‘21 Students and faculty at Episcopal continue to be concerned about an apparent epidemic of academic dishonesty. As a result, the EA community has been taking more steps to stop students from cheating. Zach Richards, dean for the class of ‘21, states, “the school has been proactive in addressing it. Teachers are more vigilant; students have had enough of cheating taking place and are taking action. If anything, I think we are going to start to see cheating decreasing.” Cheating incidents are addressed and solved in Disciplinary Council. A member of the disciplinary council, Louisa Baxter…
Caroline Sewell ‘23 Over the summer, EA improved the campus in a host of projects, but the biggest one this school year has been the new and spacious kitchen/serving area and dining area in the cafeteria. Although this new cafeteria has just been completed now, it has been in the works for a long time. Chief Financial Officer Lawrence Capuzzi explains that the original size of the cafeteria was a problem from the very beginning. “We knew the cafeteria was going to be too small. We didn’t have the money to pay for the campus they designed, so they kind…
Alina Klaehn ‘22 Fiona Riley ‘22 EA instituted six delayed openings throughout this school year in order to provide time for department meetings. On these six days, homeroom will begin at 9:00 and all classes and activities will be pushed later by one hour. After classes end, students will go right to sports and miss domino block entirely. Last year, EA’s middle and upper school academic departments consolidated in an effort to give a more cohesive curriculum throughout the transition from Middle to Upper school. These delays will give the academic departments a chance to meet as a whole despite scheduling…
Arjun Bhamra ‘22 In the wake of 805 vaping-related illnesses and twelve deaths over the past few months, the Trump administration has decided to ban every other flavor of e-cigarettes on the market, with the exception of tobacco. On September 25th, the CEO of JUUL, Kevin Burns, resigned, and the company agreed to accept the ban, despite the fact that it will prevent them from selling the majority of their products within the United States. While e-cigarettes were designed to pull smokers from regular cigarettes, the long term effects of vaping aren’t known yet. Furthermore, many manufacturers have been marketing…
Riley Hurda ‘19 Early in this spring season, the girls’ lacrosse proved that they are the ones to beat. Coming off a strong season last year during which the team tied for the Inter-Ac title, EA girl’s lacrosse have definitely had the targets on their backs this year. But after several key preseasons wins against nationally ranked teams, the girls’ lacrosse team entered Inter-Ac play this season with an undefeated record. With passionate leadership, strong chemistry, and determination, the EA team continued with dominance through the season winning games against rivals Agnes Irwin and Notre Dame. “I think our coaches…
Kelsey Richter ‘20, Asha Murray ‘20 Matt Freese ‘17 is now not only a name known by the Episcopal community but by the Major League Soccer community. Freese was a graduate in the likes of 2017. He served as Soccer Captain along with Accounting Warden his senior year. During his time at Episcopal, he received many accolades on and off the field. During his senior season at EA, he was named Delaware County player of the year and was first team all-state and all-league. Freese ‘17 also competed on the U19 United States national team and trained with Manchester United.…
Louisa Baxter ’20, Lola Quigley ’20 Jack O’Reilly started his baseball career with T ball around the age of 5 or 6. He started because his brother had played and his parents wanted him to try it. After that, Jack fell in love with the sport. He has said that he is “just as passionate about practice as the games” and that is what has allowed him to improve. This quality has led Jack to become an instrumental leader on the Episcopal baseball team for the past five years. The Episcopal Academy Baseball team has started off the season 2-2…
Louisa Baxter ’20, Lola Quigley ’20 Jack O’Reilly started his baseball career with T ball around the age of 5 or 6. He started because his brother had played and his parents wanted him to try it. After that, Jack fell in love with the sport. He has said that he is “just as passionate about practice as the games” and that is what has allowed him to improve. This quality has led Jack to become an instrumental leader on the Episcopal baseball team for the past five years. The Episcopal Academy Baseball team has started off the season 2-2…
Ava Petillo ’21 The Girls’ Athlete of the Month for May is Grace Smith ‘19. Smith is a senior on EA’s softball team. She has been playing softball for EA since her freshman year and has been the captain for the past two seasons. Smith is the team’s first baseman, however, she has been playing several positions throughout the season. Her versatility was noted on by teammate Riley Hurda ‘21. Hurda states “Grace is so versatile. She plays everywhere on the field, mostly first base, but she sometimes is thrown in at third and she does a great job of…
Kevin Sporici ‘20 The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia is a well-known location, but also has a connection to our own community at EA. Dr. Holly Hedrick, whose children attend EA, is a pediatric surgeon who has been affiliated with CHOP for many years and has a large role there. As a surgeon, she is very familiar with her specialty, yet her career at CHOP extends outside of the operating room. Hedrick has been a part of the staff at CHOP for two decades now. “I did the final part of my training at Children’s Hospital”, she says. “I’m a pediatric…
Owen Maier ’20 All the American Literature teachers at EA have decided not to read Huckleberry Finn next year and instead read other works by Mark Twain. The novel’s racist undertones contribute to questions about its merits in a classroom setting. The novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain is a story about Huck’s experiences as a youth along the Mississippi River in the early to mid-1800s. First published in the United States in 1885, the novel has drawn controversy in recent decades. The narrator uses the vernacular of the time, leading to what critics say is vulgar…
Mary Cipperman ’21 Over the past few months, the Trump administration announced restrictions on individual travel to Cuba, in an effort to limit its economy. Episcopal Academy’s Cuba May Term trip is continuing despite these challenges. John Bolton, national security advisor, states that “The Department of the Treasury will implement further regulatory changes to restrict non-family travel to Cuba,” The New York Times reports. He hopes to divert wealth from Cuba through new restrictions. He terms American traveling “veiled tourism,” suggesting ulterior motivations for individual movements. The Department of Treasury announced two major reforms. Americans will no longer be able…
Nicholas Christos ‘20 The College Board has instituted a new program to calculate an adversity score for students applying to colleges in the coming year, according to The New York Times. The score will aim to demonstrate the conditions of applicants’ backgrounds and the environments of their youth by examining socioeconomic factors and educational factors. The adversity score a student will be able to receive will fall between 0 and 100, with an average score of 50. Students with higher scores correlate to more environmental disadvantage. To calculate the scores, the College Board will use 15 distinct factors to illuminate…
Arjun Bharma ‘22 Recently, Pennsylvania state senators Daylin Leach and Sharif Street proposed Senate Bill 350 to legalize marijuana. EA students and teachers have a variety of opinions about this bill. Some cite the positive impacts of medical marijuana and the enormous fiscal benefits, while others worry about the effect of increasing the availability and its use as a gateway drug. The bill would both legalize marijuana for adults over 21 and annual criminal records of those found in possession of marijuana. Ellen Hay, US History teacher, says “In my opinion, marijuana isn’t as impacting or dangerous as, say, alcohol,…
Maiah Islam’21 With three teachers departing and a new head entering, the science department will undergo significant alterations for the 2019-2020 school year. The science teachers leaving the Upper School include Dr. Kelley Bethoney, Matthew Shapiro, Perry Zanki, and Stephen Kerwin. Specifically, independent research opportunities will change. Additionally, the department will also merge with middle school, and Grace Limaye will assume the role of department head from George Lorenson. Shapiro, who taught Honors Biology, Chemistry, and a neuroscience elective is heading to Germantown Friends School. He says he is leaving EA because “the commute will be a lot shorter.” The…
Phoebe Barr ’19 Non-unionized workers are employed in Episcopal’s dining hall expansion, a complex decision with a great deal of history behind it. Though area unions have been known to protest the use of non-union labor, Mark Notaro, Director of Operations, explains that EA has typically friendly relations with unions. “We had a great relationship – I say that not because it’s changed, but because, while we built the campus, all the contractors we used were unions,” Notaro says. The current campus was built exclusively with union labor because “they could mobilize the sheer number of people they needed on…
Phoebe Barr ’19 Non-unionized workers are employed in Episcopal’s dining hall expansion, a complex decision with a great deal of history behind it. Though area unions have been known to protest the use of non-union labor, Mark Notaro, Director of Operations, explains that EA has typically friendly relations with unions. “We had a great relationship – I say that not because it’s changed, but because, while we built the campus, all the contractors we used were unions,” Notaro says. The current campus was built exclusively with union labor because “they could mobilize the sheer number of people they needed on…