UPA Aquila

05/26/2019

Ending the last band concert of the year on a high note, band students blended the sounds of their various instruments to create harmonious performances. The performances ranged from classical overtures with flutes to jazz melodies with saxophones. “Since it was our last band concert, it was really nostalgic because we got to hear how much we learned and how much we grew from the beginning to the end of the year,” seventh grader Sharon Pham, a percussionist in beginning band, said. During the concert, members of the graduating class of 2019 played duets with each other. “I feel sad because I’ll be going to college next year, but we ended with a bang,” senior Amit James, a clarinetist in advanced band, said. James also offers advice to anyone who would want to take a chance on joining band next year. “Just give it a try,” he said. “Even if you don’t think you’re cut out for it, just give your instrument a try. Try whatever you want [with practicing your instrument], and you can do it.”

First photo: Alexander Aladjoff (10) plays the first notes for the first jazz performance of the concert.
Second photo: Emma Fulton (8) focuses on hitting the right notes on the marimba.
Third photo: Family members try their best to capture their sons’ and daughters’ performances on their phones.
Fourth photo: Brandon Tran (8) warms up on the clarinet before the concert begins.
Fifth photo: Band director Jemal Ramirez addresses the crowd.

Reporting and photos by Betty Nguyen, reporter.

05/19/2019

On May 7, high school students gathered in the amphitheater to spend time with therapy dogs. “I think it really helps people relax for their next class when people are stressed out,” Diego Garcia (10) said. “So when they pet a dog, it’s a way to help them forget about all the stress, and they can feel happier.”

First photo: Emani Byrd (10) pets Mia, a three-year-old labrador.
Second photo: Students gather around Daisy, a four-year-old black labrador.

Reporting and photos by Isabella Bronner, Reporter.

04/16/2019

Be sure to pick up a copy of issue 2 during Seminar on Tuesday! More copies will be available at the front office.

Front cover design by Nicole Rendler, Co-Editor-in-Chief.

04/03/2019

After a series of serves, hits and attacks, the boys varsity volleyball team won the first three games against Silver Creek High School on April 1, resulting in a final win of 3-0. “[High school volleyball] is a lot different than middle school volleyball,” Kyumin Han (9) said. “I think it’s because there are a lot of people that are better than us, so it makes it more enjoyable.”
First photo: Han jump serves the ball to begin the match.
Second photo: Ernesto Guevara (11) performs a spike which is blocked by two players from the opposing team.
Third photo: Members of the boys volleyball team recuperate during a break.
Fourth photo: Coach Tom Guevara gives Aaron Estrada (11) a pep talk before the start of the next game.

Reporting and photos by Emily Hung, Editor-in-Chief.

03/12/2019

As students arrived to school on March 11, they saw hail on campus, covering the roofs of the school and the ground. Students and parents went to the amphitheater before school, where there was a build-up of hail, resulting in snow-like conditions. Hail also covered the parking lot and the My School Preschool playground. “I didn’t expect the Bay Area to snow, you would only expect it to snow in New York or on the East Coast,” Aghalya Narayanan (10) said. The hail storm occurred on March 10, and residue from the storm was present at UPA and around East San Jose. “I saw it on my friend’s Snapchat story, and I saw all the hail clumped up. I was like 'wow, it really looks like its snowing in San Jose and it never really happens,’” Kiana Saqui (11) said.

Reporting and photos by Emily Magallon, Reporter.

03/11/2019

On March 2, students from around Silicon Valley gathered at Hayes Mansion for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) to celebrate the hard work each team put into fundraising to help fight blood cancer. It was a night filled with food, dancing and awards. One of these awards was presented to Team PowerBlood—Akshara Kollu (10), Thrisha Praveen (10) and Julia Khinno (10)—which earned second place for fundraising one of the largest sums of money. “[Julia, Thrisha and I] definitely want to be mentors next year because we love LLS,” Kollu said.

First Photo: All the student participants and the amount of money they raised.
Second Photo: Guests hold up a light to honor those that are battling cancer.
Third Photo: Khinno, Kollu and Praveen accept their award from Anoushka Dave (12) and Arnav Verma (12).
Fourth Photo: Rohan Tibrewal (11) enjoys the dance after the awards ceremony.
Fifth Photo: Multiple LLS teams from UPA accept awards for their hard work.

Reporting and photos by Greg Haessner, In-Depth Editor.

02/23/2019

In the past two school years, Aquila has dealt with a censorship issue once. While interviewing an administrator in January 2018 regarding a sexual harassment incident that occurred on campus during the first semester, editor-in-chief Emily Hung was given the option to either hand over the final version of her article (on sexual harassment) to the administration for review or cut out the information she included about the incident. “As student journalists, we learn about media ethics and how to deal with censorship, but I never expected myself to be in a position that required me to ‘fight’ to have my voice heard,” she said. “Referring back to the code of ethics helped me in making the most appropriate decision, and while I took into consideration what the administrator told me, I did not allow my article to be censored. It’s really difficult, as a student to, first of all, not self-censor, and second, to be in a position where you have to go against what an administrator says. But I believe going through this experience has made me a stronger journalist, and I’m able to lead others if they happen to encounter a similar issue.” The full article, “No, Women Are Not Up for Grabs,” can be found by clicking below.

In light of increasing tension around the issue of sexual harassment, victims of harassment who

02/22/2019

Today’s theme is , and we will look at the most recent instance when we kept you informed on a public and community issue hidden beneath the facade.

In issue one, reporter Vrinda Vutukury decided to investigate the issue of cyberbullying. She went to the extent of speaking with the father of a young girl who died by su***de after being cyberbullied at Los Gatos High School. Her article on page 10 presents the harmful effects of cyberbullying on the teenage mind not only for students at UPA, but students everywhere. Although it is a topic seldom discussed openly at school, several UPA students who have experienced cyberbullying were interviewed, bringing the issue close to home. We have granted those students anonymity and would like to thank them for coming forward and sharing their stories.

02/21/2019

Since 2011, Aquila has served as a designated public forum for student expression. We strive to accurately report on all events and to feature stories of students at our school as we uphold our mission statement. In our most recent issue of the newsmagazine on page 19, multimedia manager Kristian Crowther shared the story of a band student, Elizabeth Lau (8), who recently was the first UPA student to be accepted into the California All-State Band. In his article, “From Eagle to All-State,” Crowther follows Lau’s journey from being initially rejected by the honor band to her reaudition a year later, which ultimately led to her acceptance. “Interviewing Elizabeth was interesting because I went in knowing she had a lot of talent,” Crowther said. "Getting to know how she practiced her music and how her passion grew with her throughout
the years made me realize that I too should be pushing with things I enjoy. Whoever reads Elizabeth’s story should be inspired to do the things they love regardless of the difficulty and always put in 100%.”

Photo by Kristian Crowther, Multimedia Manager.

02/19/2019

This week, Aquila will be actively posting with daily themed topics ranging from every day journalism to past issues we've covered within our community for Scholastic Journalism Week.

We are student journalists, and we are proud! This video shows the amount of work and fun we put into every issue of the newsmagazine. The full version will be published on the Aquila News YouTube channel soon.

02/15/2019

Issue 1 is now available online via issuu!
https://issuu.com/upaaquila/docs/aquila_feb_2019

Copies are also available at the front office. Stay tuned for issue 2 coming early April!

02/14/2019

On Feb. 10, UPA’s Art Club had their first volunteering event at Family Supportive Housing, a shelter that temporarily provides housing and support for homeless families. The Art Club hosted activities for the children and their mothers to participate in, such as creating Valentine Day cards, origami animals and DIY yarn monsters. “I understand that most kids in homeless shelters are stressed and isolated,” co-president Dana Feng (11) said. “So being able to each them art and do fun crafts was very rewarding. The moms were also very into the activities and really enjoyed themselves as well, which was a bonus. We plan to host more events like this in the future.”

First photo: Annie Tong (12) and Andrea AhSue (12) help out at the origami animals station.
Second photo: Amy Chattaway (12) and Annelise
Kamm (12) teach the children how to make yarn
monsters.
Third photo: The Valentine Day card making station.
Fourth photo: A yarn monster made by one of the
children, who is not shown to respect their privacy.

Reporting and photos by Betty Nguyen, Reporter.