Editor’s Note: This is the fifth in a series of 10 features about clubs at West.

In a large, desolate courtroom, with pens and legal pads scattered on the table, a judge walks in and everyone rises as all whispering ceases. The judge commands everyone to be seated, and after a few words about the trial, the prosecution introduces themselves. While this may seem like a normal court case, upon closer inspection, you’ll find that the lawyers are not adults with law degrees, but merely high school students. These high school students are trained in law and are prepared to handle any situation that may range from robberies and stolen cars to battery and assault.

Dressed in black suits and pants with red or white shirts and ties, the Niles West Mock Trial team takes the stand, airing confidence and sophistication, determined to show what they can do.

Led by coaches Jason Stanford and Dana Kanwischer and captains, seniors Sebastian Sulewski and Alex Ehrenberg, Mock Trial is a competitive law club where students get the opportunity to discover and experience what goes on in a courtroom.

A total of 12 teams are invited to every competition, however, each team is only up against one other team. There are two rounds and each team argues for both sides, the plaintiff/prosecution and the defense. One round is spent arguing for one side, and then the roles are reversed when the next round begins. Each round lasts around one to three hours. Competitions are even held at real courtrooms.

“It’s intense. Some of the schools we go against, especially the private schools, don’t joke about this stuff. It’s very serious, but they are also very nice. The atmosphere is intense, yet welcoming in a way,” junior Asma Akram said.

Although Mock Trial was only formed two years ago, the team has made incredible strides rank-wise. During their first year, they placed 22nd out of 24 teams at Dupage County and at State, they placed 40th.

Last year, the team’s hard work and dedication payed off as they jumped to 5th place at Dupage County and were top 10 at State.

Sulewski’s said he is excited for this year because the team is more experienced than ever.

“I am really excited to help lead the team this year. I feel that we have learned a lot in the past year and are stronger than ever,” Sulewski said.

Unlike other clubs offered at Niles West, Mock Trial provides a unique opportunity to develop your public speaking skills, become more confident, and work on your critical skills all the while learning how our legal system works. Despite the amount of hard work, those involved in the club say it is the people that make the club really special.

“It’s really the students that make this team special. It’s a great group of students. They work hard, they’re open to ideas and suggestions on how to improve and they’re just fun. It’s a good group,” Stanford said.

Most students in the club enjoy critical thinking and are interested in the criminal justice system and see it as a possible future career.

“I enjoy all the critical thinking that goes into preparing for a case. There is an immense amount of information that has to be considered when planning how we will frame our cases. We deliberate extensively to make the best arguments possible and it feels great to translate this into the court atmosphere,” Sulewski said.

As for new members, although it took them some time, they soon became familiar with the legal jargon. After that, Mock Trial became very interesting and they couldn’t wait to be at competitions at courthouses.

“It was hard to understand in the beginning but once I understood the language, it got easy and interesting. I like it and I think other people should join because of the knowledge you can get. If you like to compete and make statements about what is right and wrong, you should join,” freshman Sarah Feroz Sundrani said.

Everyone is welcome to come to the meetings after school on Tuesdays and Thursdays in room 3015 until Sunday, Nov. 1, when the state case is released by the Illinois Bar Association. At that point, they ask for their members to be fully committed to the club and focus and analyzing every aspect of the case until the State competition.

Editor’s Note: This is the sixth in a series of 10 features about clubs at West.

Most students regard Thursday as a routine school day but for some individuals, it’s an especially notable time of the week; it’s when the Advanced App Development Club meets. During an average meeting, almost every chair in the room is filled with eager students ready to build and innovate computer programs to help solve our everyday problems. Computer screens are filled with a diverse set of images ranging from vivid, colorful animations to graphic programming languages.

The senior members of the club calmly walk the few rows of computers assessing the progress of club members and answering questions. Some students are searching the internet for answers to problems in their code, while others are working collectively in groups testing and experimenting with others’ programs. New members of the club are working on easy, introductory-level programming languages. Some returning members are working on advanced programs with many intricate details that need to be accounted for. Finally, the club sponsor, math and computer science teacher Matthew Fahrenbacher, is seated in a tall swivel chair in the back of the room carefully working on his own laptop.

The Advanced App Development Club is the first club at Niles West that involves writing computer code. Junior Michael Leon, a veteran programmer, said he is excited about the formation of a place where all programmers can work together on new and exciting ideas.

“The most exciting part is establishing a community of programmers, and channeling efforts to become a better club,” Leon said.

A big advancement in scheduling has allowed the App Development Club to take place after school instead of before school. This has quadrupled the number of members in the club since the 2014-2015 year, and members are excited for more intelligent and motivated programmers to join the club. Members believe that moving to the after school time frame will allow the club to advance at a much faster pace, and as a result, new and interesting opportunities will be created for the students at Niles West.

“I’m excited we moved after school. We have a little bit of a better direction for new coders,” Fahrenbacher said.

Students have quickly advanced through concepts in computer science, and they have made tremendous progress throughout their time spent participating in the club. New members have already started learning programming syntax, and skilled members have gained valuable experience from helping out their fellow students.

“Teaching is learning. It reinforces your understanding of computer science,” Leon said.

Everyone in the Advanced App Development Club, from senior members to new additions, said they are excited for the upcoming year.

“I’m excited that I get to have fun, make games, and program,” freshman Alex White said.

Members have amazing aspirations for the App Development Club this year. Many of the coders want to help improve technological resources for other students at Niles West through group projects; however, they are also enthusiastic about starting their own projects.  

“We’d like to get as many new people to code. Our second goal is to try and organize the creation of several large group projects,” Fahrenbacher said.

Other students have hopes of illuminating the entire concept of computer programming, so coding doesn’t seem as daunting as the name implies.

“I want to clarify what programming really is to the student body this year,” Leon said.

For students who enjoy participating in innovation, problem solving, and informational technology, the Advanced App Development Club is the place to be. It is located in Room 1510 and meets Thursdays after school at 3:45 p.m.

Editor’s Note: This is the seventh in a series of 10 features about clubs at West.

Many students believe they can’t join other cultural clubs because of they are a different nationality. You won’t see Japanese students signing up for Israeli club or a Greek student signing up for Assyrian club. This was the same problem Middle Eastern club had.

It took three years of effort for alumni Aisha Khaleel and Natalie Massih to create the club. They believed that since there was not a club for all the Middle Eastern countries such as Jordanian club, or Iraqi club and so on, there should at least be a club where people from all the Middle Eastern countries could bond with others similar to them and to encourage everyone to be united. Students that aren’t Middle Eastern are welcome to join and learn more about the Middle East.

“I think for us Middle Eastern people it brings us together and for people outside our culture it really helps them open up their minds to our culture and get an idea what it’s like,” explains senior club president Mariyam Khaleel.

“A good reason it was made was so that we could incorporate all different cultures and ethnicities. We accept people of any race and religion and it’s not really focused on one, everyone is welcome,” vice president and junior Isabella Lazar said.

The club had a lot of effort put forth into it’s creation especially because of the clubs disapproval by former student activities director, Jessica Pritzker.

 “It started kind of as a political movement because Aisha and Natalie (club founders) had been trying to start a Middle Eastern club for a long time and our previous activities director told them that they couldn’t do it. She said ‘you should join Assyrian club,’ and they told us we’re not Assyrian! So it was just kind of important to do it as soon as we had a activities director that said yes,” club sponsor and English teacher Tamara Jaffe said.

Middle Eastern club is currently in its second trial year before becoming an official club, but when the club started last year, its main focus was on dancing and raising money. Even though Middle Eastern club will still be selling Pita Inn or falafel rolls to raise money for Assyrian and Palestinian refugees, it has many other goals to achieve this year besides its fundraising work or dancing.

“I really want everybody excited about Middle Eastern culture and to continue enjoying it and showing people the Middle East is a place of growth and peace and happiness and not just a place where people stereotype filled with war,” Jaffe said.

Besides raising money for charities, Middle Eastern club will be engaging in many other activities such as cooking Middle Eastern dishes, learning some Arabic, understanding more about Middle Eastern culture. In addition to the club’s amazing activities, members say it’s a great way to meet new people and make new friends and even learn something new, but the main goal of the Middle Eastern Club is to emphasize that fact that you don’t need to be Middle Eastern to join.

“We had Christians, Muslims, and people who weren’t really religious and we were all just dancing together having fun,” Jaffe said.

Middle Eastern club really is a great opportunity to raise money for those in need, meet new people, and have lots of fun all while learning more about the Middle Eastern culture. For anyone interested, the club meets every Mondays in room 1199, regular meetings take place from 3:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. or in special cases last till 4:30 p.m.

Editor’s Note: This is the eighth in a series of 10 features about clubs at West.

If you were into Telenovela club on Wednesday after school, you would witness a group of kids intently watching for example, Ricardo reveal his love for Rubi, only to discover she’s married to his brother, but pregnant with Ricardo’s baby. They would animatedly discuss this new revelation all while munching on dip and chips.

Telenovela club was founded by juniors Lesley Ongyaco and Maria Kuo who wanted to share their love of telenovelas with everyone. With the help of Spanish teacher, Carolyn Sanchez, telenovela club was officially formed this year.

“Last year in Ms. Sanchez’s class, we started watching Teresa and we got so into it. There’s something really cool about experiencing telenovelas with people you genuinely enjoy having around. You don’t get that same vibe when you’re watching by yourself. There’s just something great about watching telenovelas with other people,” Ongyaco said.

The idea to from a club dedicated to watching and discussing Spanish telenovelas sprung to Ongyaco and Kuo during their Spanish 3 honors class where they were first introduced to telenovelas.

“The idea came last year when we discovered that we weren’t going to finish Teresa in class. We were like we should have a way to be able to watch telenovelas uninterrupted, so why not just make a club out of this?” Ongyaco said.

Telenovela club is a great way to learn about Spanish culture and the language itself and even more so for students taking a Spanish class.

“This idea sprung out of a Spanish class and it was just a new way for us to learn about the language itself. It’s a very modern way for us to experience Spanish culture. It’s very good for students taking Spanish because it helps improve their listening comprehension and its a very a different and modern way to learn about the Spanish language,” Ongyaco said.

Kuo says the club inspires her to learn Spanish and extend her use of the language beyond the classroom.

“It motivates us to get into the culture and practice our Spanish, it’s relevant to our lives,” Kuo said.

New member and sophomore Sarah Zasso joined the club to enjoy the twists and turns of telenovelas with friends and people who have the same interests as her.

“I loved joined because I love watching telenovelas at home. Telenovela club is a great way to hang out with friends and learn Spanish all in one,” Zasso said.

Although telenovelas are mainly Spanish, all students are welcome to join whether they studied Spanish or not. The club is a great way to hang out with other students and watch shows filled with more plot twists than an episode of Pretty Little Liars – without all the plot holes.

“I think it’s a great experience and I was very happy that some of my former students were interested in continuing to watch telenovelas. From a Spanish teacher point of view, they’re learning Spanish culture and practicing their listening. Last year, when we were watching in class, there would be phrases they would repeat and they would really own those phrases. I think it’s a great experience for anyone whether they studied Spanish or not,” Sanchez said.

If you are interested in joining, stop by room 2310, Wednesdays after school or contact Ongyaco or Kuo at lesong1@nilesk12.org and markuo@nilesk12.org for more information.

Editor’s Note: This is the ninth in a series of 10 features about clubs at West.

Have you ever been so passionate about something, but sadly Niles West didn’t offer a club for it? Senior JD Kim surely was. Over the summer Kim and his friends would play ping pong nearly every day. The group of friends started playing when senior Jaeden Lee‘s dad put a ping pong table in one of the empty rooms of his office building.

“I just thought why don’t we have a Ping Pong Club? So I got my friends together to help me start it,” Kim said.

For every club at Niles West, a sponsor is required. In order to start ping pong club, Kim needed a sponsor so he asked just about everyone, until one day he ran into national college adviser Jerry Pope. Kim knew Pope before asking him to sponsor because he talked to his college prep class the first week of the 2015-2016 school year.

“JD mentioned that he was starting the club, so I decided to help him in that pursuit. To sum it up, I wanted to help a cool club be realized,” senior, Isaac Moldofsky, said.

Ping Pong Club started off as a small club, but slowly grew to have many members from all classes with Kim as the president, senior Bryce Hamamoto as the secretary, and Moldofsky, as the treasurer.

Ping pong club officially started in the first month of the school year. They meet every Wednesday after school in the cafeteria.

Editor’s Note: This is the last in a series of 10 features about clubs at West.

For a long time, Niles West has provided students the opportunity to create new clubs that they feel deserve a place at West or will interest many students. Senior Daniel Liu took advantage of this opportunity and created what is now known as archery club.

“My friend, he introduced me to archery and I liked it a lot. I think it’s a really fun thing to do and it helps people relieve stress. After I did archey one time outside of school, so I thought it would be fun if more students did archery,” Liu said.

Liu, who at the time had only been living in America for three years was a part of the English Language Learners program and it was at the ELL office that Liu took action and asked secretary Subica Rauf to sponsor the club.

“Daniel approached me and asked me if I could be the sponsor for the club and I agreed. At that time he didn’t speak much English and he had only come to America three years ago. I felt like it wad really bold move for an English Language Learner to come up with concept of creating a new club,” Rauf said.

From there on, archery club gained many members who found the club interesting and unique, reminding them of the deeply loved dystopian character, Katniss Everdeen.

“It’s something that most people don’t do and it’s unique and it’s also an adrenaline rush when you it the bullseye and it feels really good. I though it looked cool and like in the movies when they show Katniss or someone shooting a bow and arrow and I really wanted to try that. This is the closest I’m ever going to get to Katniss Everdeen,” junior June Choi said.

Since it was founded, archery club had been focused on teaching inexperienced students the techniques of archery and fundraising for equipment.

“For the past year and half, we’ve been practicing and teaching the students how to hold the bow and how to properly shoot the arrow and with that, we do a lot of fundraising because the equipment is really expensive,” Rauf said.

Not only have students learned how to shoot a bow and arrow properly, but they have also discovered that archery is a great way to relive stress and to let go of all their worries.

“It’s a great way for students to be interactive and it also teaches them eye and hand coordination between them and the target. I’ve also learned that it removes stress, students can just come in and practice and take their mind way from other things,” Rauf said.

As of this year, archery club is focused on preparing for tournaments in the near future and they hope to have some changes made to the club itself.

“My hope for the future is that students can take part in tournaments. We only have an outdoor range, not an indoor range, but if we were able to do that then we could get more students to join and have archery club at anytime because this is more of a seasonal sport,” Rauf said.

If you are interested in joining, archery club meets Thursdays after school in the ELL resource center and from there, they meet at the archery range located behind the football field.

The sun shines hot on the back of freshman Mary Samano as she nocks an arrow on her bow, being careful of its position. Her arms shake ever so slightly as she pulls the string back, taking on her familiar shooting stance, eyes narrowed in the bright sunlight. With a swift gesture, she releases the string, sending the arrow flying right into the target.

Samano has admired both sports and weapons since she was a child. It was as a kid she discovered her love for archery.

Samano was scrolling through the internet on her parents’ computer, idly clicking through webpage. As she scrolled past yet another website, she saw it: a picture of a person shooting a bow. Intrigued, she clicked on that image, taking herself to an unknown website with videos on archery. She watched several of those, enchanted, before she became hooked on these things called “bows.” Years later, she still remembers these moments.

“I remember I was so excited,” she recalled, laughing. “That was probably all I talked about that day.”

Soon after Samano began attending Niles West, she joined several clubs. She soon learned of the Archery Club,  and excitedly looked into the details. She finally decided to join the club, pushing everything else aside to participate.

“I got a bunch of my friends to come with me to the first meeting, and we loved it. We’ve been going there ever since,” Samano said. “It’s a lot of work, but it’s definitely fun.”

While Samano has been working hard shooting during club meetings, others have taken note of that unrelenting hard work. One of these people is Archery Club sponsor Subica Rauf, a member of the ELL staff.

“She tries really hard. Sometimes it looks like she’s struggling a bit too much, but you can see that she really loves [archery],” Rauf said.

One of Samano’s aforementioned friends who is in the Archery Club with her, freshman Bajeel Syeda, agrees.

“She just puts so much effort into it that it gets me really motivated,” Syeda said.

Despite her love of archery, Samano isn’t sure exactly where she wants to go with this hobby of hers. The one thing she does know she wants to do is show girls that you don’t have to be a princess or a damsel in distress to be beautiful and loved.

“Just do what you love,” Samano said. “It doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks as long as you’re happy.”

Around November of last year, sophomore Christopher Witt changed the path of his high school career by saying “I want to play the funny-looking one,” and another musician was added to family of the illustrious underdog of the instrument world– the bassoon.

Unhappy with the clarinet, Witt wanted to try something new last year and was pleasantly surprised by how much he liked playing the bassoon: a paradigm of how small challenges and new experiences can be life-altering.

“Playing the bassoon has impacted my life tremendously. I planned on quitting band going into high school because I wasn’t very interested in it. I also used to play video games all day long, but when I started the bassoon, I found something to be motivated to be good at. Now I have something to look forward to do after school every day,” Witt said.

Commonly mistaken as an oboe, the bassoon’s similarities to the smaller instrument end at its use of a double reed. In order to create sound, bassoonists release supported air through two reeds that vibrate against each other, resonating through the 4-foot-tall instrument and playing from as low as Bb 1 to over three octaves about as high as G 5.

“The coolest thing about playing bassoon is the amount of people who watch in astonishment. Nobody knows what it is! Even during CYSO auditions, people called it an oboe! That brings me to my next point: it’s not an oboe! It is the greatest of double reeds called the bassoon,” Witt said.

Enamored with the unconventional instrument, “50-60%” of the time he spends hanging out with his friends is now spent playing music with them.

“Chris works really hard. Whenever I see him we usually talk about music, the things he’s been working on, and all these goals he wants to accomplish. He’s always trying to improve and get really good. Ever since Chris picked up the bassoon, he’s always been working and trying to be the best,” sophomore Anthony Ty said.

Regardless of where he goes, even his family knows how much he cares about getting better at his instrument given his constant practicing.

“He practices a LOT. At all hours of the day. He works really hard, and I can hear him playing the same measure until he gets it right over and over again. He practices while he plays video games, Skypes his friends, etc. Occasionally we’ll practice together. But it went from me helping him with music and rhythms to him being a billion times better than me. I need his help now,” sister and senior Elizabeth Witt said.

This improvement didn’t come out of the blue. Like many band students, Chris has to continually push past frustration as a musician in order to reap the rewards; it’s not an easy job, but when one puts in the time and effort to be good at something, there is a transformation in not only work ethic but skill level.

“Even when I have a lot of homework I find time to practice. Whether it be fingering the notes in my head while I work on math or listening to a piece I’m working on while reading, I find time to work on my bassoon skills,” Witt said.

Within less than a year of deciding to play the bassoon, Witt has already reached new heights in his musical abilities and made top ensembles like the Niles West symphonic winds, the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra (CYSO), and the District VII senior orchestra of the Illinois Music Educator’s Association (ILMEA).

“I auditioned for CYSO because my teacher, Hanna Sterba, thought it’d be a really good experience for me. I spent all summer practicing 2+ hours a day getting ready for it and it paid off in the end,” Witt said.

He has been involved with the Whitewater high school honor band over the summer, played with the Niles Township summer orchestra, and done chamber music written by friend and junior Vijay Shah whenever called upon to do it. Such achievements are amazing for a beginner bassoon player– especially a sophomore who has only been playing for a year– and a source of inspiration and high hopes to music students and teachers alike.

“Chris is an extremely hard worker and one of the hardest working students I have. I think this is the reason he is having so much success as a musician. I have the same expectations for Chris as I would have for any other student. That he continues to work as hard as he can, that he continues to grow both as a person and a musician, and that he perseveres when things inevitably get difficult,” band director Justin Johnson said.

In the future, Witt plans to work all summer to save up for his own bassoon and has hopes of continuing his bassoon study at his dream college, Northwestern University. He also plans on going to masterclasses and bassoon camps in the summer to practice in as many musical settings as he can.

“A piece of advice for aspiring musicians is to just practice. Towards the start of the summer, I was just average. I practiced every single day and pushed through the hard days and I’ve become a talented musician. Even though you may go through slumps where it feels like you don’t improve, which I’m currently going through right now, just push through it. The outcome is worth the hard work,” Witt said.

The beautiful skies of Paris, the Philippines, London, Spain and plenty more have been seen by senior Csarene Laguardia and her mother over the years. Her pictures of her recent travels on Facebook and Instagram are liked by hundreds of students on their phones sitting at home.

“My mom and I travel to different continents every year because we do everything that we love together. As best friends we love to experience new cultures, try new things, and go to different places. We love an adventure. It also gives my mom more valuable time to really get to know me as a person. Yes, she’s my mom so she knows everything about me but I’m talking about the little things like my favorite songs, colors, and all that. It also gives me more time to get to know my mom more as a person,” Laguardia says.

Since her sophomore year, Laguardia’s mother has planned and payed for the trips that take up most of her daughters summer and some of her school time. She’s learned a thing or two over the years from her mother and her travels.

“My mom wanted me to be more well traveled because it would open my eyes to a lot of things. She wanted me to experience new things in life that not a lot of kids get to do at my age. She tells me that people learn from their own experiences and traveling is just one of them. It teaches someone how to be responsible of their self when they’re somewhere else and not within the comfort of their means; it teachers someone to adapt to new cultures and interact with people,”

Their mother daughter bonding time isn’t the only thing Laguardia gets out of her travels. Laguardia is constantly taking part in new cultures and experiencing new things and appreciating her mother.

“When we travel it really shocks me how open minded people are with other cultures and people. That really makes me happy because it shows me how accepting everyone is of other people. The world is very big. When we travel, I’m still shocked at the fact that there’s so much people in the world, like I could be awake but in the back of my mind I would still have that thought that everyone on the other side is sleeping,” Laguardia goes on.

Laguardia’s optimism is infectious as she contemplates what she’s really learned from three years of constant flying from country to country.

“If the world is this big that gives us people more chances and opportunities to make the world a better place or make our community that we live in a better place to raise our kids in. The world gives us endless chances to make things better. However, that’s not what some are doing and what they should remember.”

Laguardia isn’t just visiting countries, though, she’ll be staying in the Philippines for college, too.

“I’m going away for college because I was born in the Philippines but when we migrated here I felt like my sense of home had disappeared so I wanted to study somewhere where I was comfortable in. I wanted to study somewhere abroad because I also love to travel and it gives me more time to find myself as an individual. I also wanted to broaden my circle of friendship and family to a different part of the world.”

Time is what dictates the condition of human existence. Though difficult to define from both a philosophical and scientific standpoint, quite simply, time rules every aspect of modern civilization: it determines the hour at which you wake, eat, sleep, and fulfill the many obligations to which your life is attached. There is no way of escaping its power, but there are ways of learning to live in coexistence with time.

From her ability to balance an impressive list of  after school responsibilities to her extraordinary growth as a learner, senior Jwan Yousif travels through time’s demands with wisdom from countries beyond and kindness that knows no cultural boundary.

“I like to be on time. This is my strength. In Iraq, people say that middle eastern people are not on time. I wasn’t on time until I came to the U.S. I learned there are meetings, there are other things, people won’t wait for you. Now I’ve changed my habit,” Yousif said.

Five minutes early to her interview, Yousif apologized for her appearance, citing work as the reason behind her otherwise unaffected visage. Just one hour before, Yousif was working at Victoria’s Secret in Old Orchard mall, cleaning up after the mess of merchandise caused by the notorious Black Friday sale. 20 hours each week, Yousif works two jobs, the other as an employee at Fresh Farms.

“She works on weekends, and when she has work during the regular days, she tries to finish her homework in school during her study hall,” senior Mariam Fouad said.

Among her limited time out of the required curriculum, Yousif also manages to serve her community as a National Honors Society and Go Green club member, peer leader, lit center tutor, and ELL tutor.

As a former ELL student, Yousif was transferred to regular English classes after three years and continues to do everything she can to support other students who are learning to speak and write English for the first time.

“It taught me a lot. When I came here, I only knew how to say ‘hi,’ ‘no,’ and ‘yes.’ But now, thank God, I’m getting through it: I’m making my way,” Yousif said.

Because of her experiences in ELL classes, Yousif has evolved with time to become a capable speaker of not only English but Spanish in addition to her native Arabic and Assyrian. In learning how to communicate through different languages, Yousif also connected to the world around her in new ways, forming strong friendships out of shared challenges.

“We became friends because we were in the same ELL classes. She’s very bright, friendly, hardworking, and she always challenges herself. She can be funny. I think she balances her lifestyle because she has a dream. She is a person who I can rely on because we both started as an ELL student. She understands the struggle that we both went through to adjust,” senior Aiko Sekino said.

Speaking is just one of many ways in which Yousif maintains her identity while exploring new cultures. Outside of the time that her jobs, education, and social life consume, Yousif attends a church where groups of people from all over the middle east can gather and worship together.

“I love singing! I sing in my church choir; we meet every Saturday and Sunday,” Yousif said.

Even when she was in Iraq 6 years ago, Yousif journeyed to both lands of old and new, singing church songs of all styles in her native Arabic.

Of course, Yousif’s respect for her culture originates from the place where her timeline began: with her family.

“We’re a lovely family. We’re always together! Before this [interview], my mom was like, ‘oh you’re tired. You just came from work. I’m going to give you a ride.’ I’m not gonna leave my family when I go to college,” Yousif said.

Regardless of blood relation, Yousif extends her title of “family” to people she trusts; like her biological family, she takes care of them.

“I have known Jwan since 2013. We became friends because when I first came to this school, she was the first person who helped me to find my class. She is a nice and helpful person. Jwan helped me to find a job. Last year, I was looking for a job and she helped me with that,” Fouad said.

Family plays an essential role in shaping Yousif’s plans for the future. She wants to stay close enough so that she can be home whenever she needs to be but also far enough to pursue her aspirations.

In five years’ time, Yousif hopes to be thriving under the pressures of time, studying hard and “getting a degree! My dream is to become a pharmacist, so I’m going to UIC. I’ll get my bachelor’s degree– which is going to be in five years or more — and then go into pharmacy. It’s a very clean job… I want to be in the medical field, but I don’t like seeing blood. I need something neat,” Yousif said.

Time is what everyone always craves and inevitably runs out of. It is an elementary fact that time will always be a part of life. For Jwan Yousif, life will be taking a new direction after she crosses the stage during graduation and receives her first diploma. She has countless scores, decades, years, and months to achieve indescribable feats and love incomparable loves in her lifetime. But in spite of all the time she has in the future, she chooses not to waste any that she is given now. For Jwan Yousif, dreams don’t just come to fruition: the time is now.

“It’s very important to have a goal so you can get through everything and overcome any difficulties with your consistency. It actually helped me see who I am and what I like. You know, before high school, you don’t know where you’re going. Like, okay, yeah. Whatever my friends do, I do. But high school? No, it made my head really clear: what I like, what I don’t. And it taught me who my real friends are and how I can find them,” Yousif said.

Unlike most freshman, Lauren Brace had an advantage while entering her first year here at Niles West. As an eighth grader, Brace was placed in off-level math classes which allowed her to attend Niles West. She would come to West for first period to take Geometry and then head back to Fairview South Middle School.

This opportunity really helped Brace understand and get an idea of what high school level classes were like and how to handle assignments, even finals. Now finals are just around the corner and Brace feels prepared and relaxed, contrary to what her peers may be thinking.

“I know getting good grades are hard to get when your involved [in sports]. I’m not too concerned with finals. I took a final last year for geometry at West so I know what to expect,” Brace said.

She hopes to finish her first semester strong and continue to do well in her challenging classes, defeating every obstacle in the way of her goals.

However, great academic achievements are not the only things that define Brace. She is also expecting to be a 3 season athlete. She just completed her first season on the girls swim team, is currently competing with the girls freshman A basketball team, and hopes to join the JV water polo team.

“Being a three sport athlete is difficult. But it’s also a lot of fun and it helps you meet new people,” she said.

Some might say Brace’s athletic aspirations are similar to her brother’s, senior Lucas Brace. Lucas Brace is a member of both the varsity swim team and varsity water polo team.

“It’s actually really cool seeing Lucas around school. Him and I are really close. I’m gonna miss him a lot next year,” Brace said.

But like most siblings, attending school with a brother or sister can be an interesting and new experience.

“It was a little annoying at first. I’ve lived with her for 15 years and I see her enough at home. As the year has progressed, it hasn’t been too bad. She got busy and so did I and now we just accept each other at school,” Lucas Brace said.

Being a senior, Lucas Brace knows the ropes around high school and truly hopes his sister will have a great experience.

“My best advice would be challenge yourself but know your limits. Stay involved even if things get bust. Be kind and respectful to everyone. Manage time well and focus on academics,” Lucas Brace said, “and lastly, enjoy high school, it goes by fast.”

“Drake Park, is my home away from home,” junior Luke Parmar said.

Drake Park, located in Lincolnwood became Parmar’s home, a place he went to when he struggled internally and externally. Parmar, an avid basketball player, went to Drake Park and trained hard, pushing himself to be be better than ever. When it was time for seventh grade basketball tryouts, Parmar trained even harder.

“All I ever wanted in life was something with my last name on it. I know that sounds silly but when I made the seventh grade team, my Lincolnhall shooting shirt became my prized possession,” Parmar said.

Unfortunately, Parmar was cut from the team when he tried out for the eighth grade team. Being cut hurt Parmar deeply and he felt as if he had no choice, but to leave basketball behind.

“I was cut for the first time in my life and unable to cope with the pain I had just decided to quit. After realizing I was letting so many people down, I began to change everything around and keep fighting,” Parmar said.

Soon after, Parmar realized how many people he was letting down by not striving to be the best he could be and leaving something he deeply loved behind. With encouragement from his friends, Parmar found himself standing in Drake Park once more, a basketball in his hand and being reminded of the place where his dream started.

“I supported Luke every step of the way. I would come to Drake Park everyday and encouraged him to work towards his dream,” junior Alen Radeljic said.

When freshman year came Parmar tried out for basketball and made the team, regaining his confidence and going back to doing what he loved the most.  Making the team helped him regain his confidence in the game. Parmar gave the game his all, even during practices. Parmar finally felt like he was achieving the dream he worked for his whole life.

“Luke is a hard working kid and will do anything to succeed. He will workout, get into shape, and try to be noticeable to the coaches. He is not a slacker, he’s a go getter. I totally support him and no matter what happens, I’ll be by his side,” junior Taylor Isirov said.

Sadly when sophomore year came, Parmar was faced with the same rejection he felt in eight grade. Parmar did not make the basketball team for being too small for a game where the minimum height is usually six feet.

When Parmar was rejected, he handled it very differently this time. Parmar didn’t quit and went back to training, spending his time at the place that reminded him what the game was really about. When junior year approached, Parmaer decided to take some time off and train, hoping to be better than ever and make the varsity team.

“Basketball has taught me a lot, but the most important thing is to never give up. Even though I have been cut off of teams due to my size I will never stop chasing my dreams. No matter what. Even if that means training harder than ever imaginable,” Parmar said.

For the past six years of his life, senior Jasmin Useinovic has progressed in his love for DJing. Getting recognition through the school and social media, his talents have not gone unnoticed.

“I started by downloading a free virtual DJing program called Virtual DJ 8. Virtual [DJing] wouldn’t suffice however, so I got my first physical DJ set a few months later. I just went at it for a couple hours until I had it down,” Useinovic said.

You may know him as the opening act for the Homecoming dance, but Useinovic has landed many other gigs at numerous venues such as The Rave/Eagles Club in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. At Wisconsin, he opened up for Nicholas Weiller, better known as DJ Bro Safari, who is a big figure in the Dubstep (electronic dance) music world.

“Aside from Bro Safari, I opened up for Deorro who was ranked 19th DJ in the world at the time. I’ve performed at multiple private parties and events as well,” Useinovic explained.

After reconnecting with an old friend, DJ and producer, Chance Vincent, Useinovic and Vincent decided to partner up to increase the probability of them being selected on a lineup for a larger gig; the Northcoast Music Festival.

“I entered a contest last summer and almost made Northcoast’s lineup. This summer hopefully it will workout. It would get [my partner and I] a lot of buzz as local acts, and would be a great opportunity to add onto my resume,” Useinovic said.

After high school, Useinovic plans to continue his education at Columbia College Chicago studying music production, alongside DJing at various parties, events, and clubs.

“Going to Columbia would allow me to stay in the heart of the city where many DJing opportunities are present. They also have a great production school,” Useinovic said.

If there’s anything he tries to live by, it’s to “surround yourself with dreamers and doers, the believers and thinkers. Surround yourself with people who see the greatness within you when you don’t,” Useinovic said, quoting author Edmund Lee.

With finals only a week away, students are scrambling to finish off first semester as best as they can. With all the late night schoolwork and studying, stress is taking over, making students feel overwhelmed.

Stress is a largely occurring issue that is continuing to affect students in high school at a high rate. According to a survey by the American Psychological Association, nearly half of all teens — 45 percent — said they were stressed by school pressures.

This week during lunch periods, the SADD Club is providing stress-reducing activities in the student commons. For healthy ways to cope with all the stress about finals approaching, students can participate in activities like coloring, dancing, gardening, playing ping pong, and doing yoga.

“SADD Club developed this stress less program to promote activities that allow our brains to take a break and refocus,” SADD club sponsor Jessica Madigan said. “SADD Club’s hope is that NW students participate in the brain break activities this week and learn to navigate future stressful situations in a healthy way.”

Counselor Mitch Stern said there are two types of  positive and negative, and students need to learn how to cope.

“Positive stress is being stressed about something good that is to come,” he said. “For example, if you are

Joey Guliana, a senior student athlete, works on his anatomy homework during the last couple minutes of the period. Guliana and other students are preparing for final exams, which take place Dec. 16-18. Photo by Kevin Sanchez

an athlete waiting on a game you have in the next hour, you are positively stressed. You are wondering how the game will go, motivating yourself to do well. On the other hand, negative stress is being stressed about something bad that is occurring or that is to come. Let’s say you have a research paper due tomorrow that you still have not started, you become worried and stressed knowing how much you have to write in a short time period.”

Student athletes, like senior swimmer Lucas Brace, said balancing school and a sport can be difficult.

“As a student athlete, my life is a cycle. I wake up, go to swim practice, go to school, swim again, go home, eat, do my homework, sleep, and it keeps going on like that. It definitely does get stressful, especially with all the school work, but swimming is kind of my stress reliever. it takes my mind off of the rest of the world and helps me focus on one thing I love doing. I start my school day with it, and end my day with it as well,” Brace said.

According to Stern, it’s all a matter of how you handle the situation. Good stress motivates you, preparing you for whatever it is that you have coming. By positively acting upon this stress, it leads one to do well and result in success. Of course, if you procrastinate and wait until the last minute to complete an assignment, that results in negative stress that can lead to frustration and sometimes even anxiety.

“Niles West has a pretty good social worker, counselor, and teacher service to offer to students who need help dealing with their stress. As adults, we understand that life can get busy in-school and outside of school as well. We are all willing to help or guide students dealing with frustration so that they can handle it in a way that won’t affect them poorly,” Stern said.

Video by Inana Zomaya

With finals right around the corner, anxiety, stress, and nervousness seem to be plaguing the halls of Niles West. For freshmen, especially, the anxiety and stress levels seem to be increasing as Dec. 16-18 approach. Freshmen will be experiencing their first final exams on the dates listed.

Many freshmen are uncertain and scared of the outcome of their exams.

“I’m really scared because if I don’t do good on one that can ruin my whole grade in that class,” freshman Yasmine Hijazin said.

Many freshman view finals this way, and do not know what to expect of them. According to freshman biology teacher Anthony Serafini, there is no reason to stress so much.

“I think it’s just the newness of it that makes it so difficult; they don’t know how to prepare for it or what to expect and so that I think causes a lot of stress,” he said. “Practice tests, looking at old tests and preparing yourself by just going over old exams is usually helpful.”

Upperclassmen often had the same advice for freshmen.

“I’d say not to stress about it because the more you stress about it the more nervous you get and you may not study as well,” junior Marina Dallas said, “Study a lot though.”

“Finals can be difficult if you don’t start studying early so I recommend starting as soon as possible and looking over the material you’ve gotten in class.” junior Thomas Lappas said.

Although many teachers and upperclassmen give advice to freshmen, many are still afraid of the exams.

“I think finals are really scary because what if I fail?” freshman Mareena Gurguis said. “It’s just so much stress because it’s like from the beginning of the semester to the end.”

English teacher Rachel Gross had some advice for anxious freshmen.

“I think a lot of students get so stressed out about finals because they see it as having a huge impact on their grade,” she said. “A lot of times the reality is that it doesn’t have as much of an impact on their grade as they think, though it depends on the class.”

As the stress of finals approaches, students head to the Lit Center for help on reviewing older class materials, completing projects, and getting study tips.

“The Lit Center does get busy during finals time. I think people come in to study and try to get in all the help they can before finals,” Lit Center clerk Tamar Boghossian said.

Many students said they think that the Lit Center is very helpful in terms of getting students prepared for taking the finals.

“I’m going to the Lit Center to study for finals because the tutors really help me a lot and give me

Junior Amanda Lee tutors junior Sam Aessa on math during 9th period on Friday, Dec. 4. Photo by Grace Geraghty

different study techniques, so I can do my best in my grades,” sophomore Christina Lee said.

However, many students said they think the Lit Center, while beneficial for working on review packets and meeting with teachers, is not really an efficient way of studying.

“I’m going to the Lit Center because I have a final paper, and I want the tutors to check over my stuff. But I’m not really going to go to study for finals for some classes, like math. That’s just something I can do by myself,” junior Eliza Kirov said.

Yet, the Lit Center’s heavy traffic during finals season proves that the majority of students truly feel like they are getting the help they need.

Many tutors agree the Lit Center gets very busy during finals week due to students coming in for help.

“The Lit Center does get busier during finals. Students come in with review packets of the final material and they just want to get a good overview,” Lit Center tutor Isaac Moldofsky said.

The Lit Center is open from 7:20 a.m. to 4:00 p.m Monday through Thursday and 7:20 a.m. to 3:23 p.m on Friday.

Finals will be held on Wednesday, Dec. 16 through Friday, Dec. 18.

Video by Grace Geraghty

For junior Angela Christodoulou, her family is her inspiration for becoming an artist.

“Growing up, both my mom’s side and my dad’s side of the family were very artistic. My mom’s side was more into music and my grandpa was an actor. On my dad’s side, my grandma was an artist, so growing up that rubbed off on me,” Christodoulou said.

Though her family was artistic, Christodoulou says that you have to find the passion for art within yourself.

“The influence I had from my family did benefit me to a certain extent, but I feel like it has to be inside of you, like nobody can tell you to become someone you are not and you have to find that within yourself,” she said.

Her favorite part of being an artist is that it helps her express herself.

“It really lets me express myself in ways that words can’t. I specialize in drawing people and I really like showing the different emotions of a person, like I guess the raw figure,” she said.

Christodoulou says she plans on pursuing art as a career.

“I’ve been looking at a few art colleges in Chicago and I definitely want to pursue it,” she said.

People often mislabel artists as just sitting in the studio and drawing, not caring about life, but that’s not necessarily true, and it’s something that resonates with Christodoulou.

“This [is] actually something that has been popping up a lot and it really resonates with me because a lot of people think artists are just bums and they don’t really care about life and they’re just gonna paint portraits on the side of the road and like not really do anything with their life,” she said.

Being an artist does not mean that there is no chance of amounting to anything. Christodoulou takes great pride in having other hobbies than art and believing in herself.

“Just because you’re an artist, doesn’t mean you won’t amount to anything and you won’t make something out of yourself. It could also mean that you’re really passionate about other things too. For example, me, I love to learn and I love to study, like I actually really enjoy going to school and I don’t just go to school for art and I actually really want to do something with my life and that’s something a lot of people don’t really think artists are capable of doing,” she said.

During an average Political Affairs and Current Events Club (PACE) meeting, anywhere from 10 to 20 students are present, and, many times, a guest speaker may be present to explain and educate the students about controversial subjects. Some students are very active and vocal in the political conversations, while others enjoy listening and incorporating new ideas into their own political ideology.

Discussions can range from several global topics, to a set of particular themes relating to current events. Many times, the members of the club are seated in a circle to interact with others in a more efficient and friendly way. Finally, the club sponsor, English teacher Michael Conroy, is seated in the back of the room moderating the club conversation.

Many members of the club have a strong interest in politics. For some students, politics is about understanding the way that laws and society affect their lives. This understanding can help members make an impact on the world around them.

“My favorite thing about living in this country is our advanced system of democracy. It involves so many elections, which I personally find the most exciting part about politics. We have elections on a national scale at least every two years, and with local elections, they are even more frequent. It’s fun to participate in the election process, because it is so empowering- it is up to the people to decide who gets elected,” senior and club founder Alan Kotlyar said.

PACE has been a place where students can develop their political ideology, and interact with other students who don’t necessarily hold the same views as they do. These types of conversations help illuminate problems and solutions in the world.

“Politics and current events provide an inexhaustible supply of topics to debate. As a teacher, I consider any medium that promotes debate to be a resource to open minds, if participants in that debate do not already have calcified positions from which they will not move. Much can be learned from such give and take,” Conroy said.

Moreover, participation in the club has helped students in and out of school. Some students said that membership in PACE has helped improve their political experience, and it has helped them in classes at Niles West.

“It has helped me to put myself outside of my comfort zone and be more open minded with regards to listening to and understanding other people. I’m so committed to PACE, that there have been times when I have prioritized PACE over my school work, which actually hurt me academically. But I can’t blame anyone for that but myself. I think PACE has helped me with AP Government and Politics because the conversations in that class often mirror discussions in PACE Club,” Kotlyar said.

In addition, the club provides a place for students interested in the global political climate to speak their minds and learn new ideas. These kinds of interactions can help members develop their ideas based on facts and reason, rather than opinions.

“As a rule, high school students have not as yet etched their political positions in stone. Moreover, adolescence is a time in which young people begin to question the positions of the world of adults on a variety of issues. PACE provides an environment in which students can begin to form opinions independent of this espoused by their elders. Therefore, organizations such as PACE provide a venue for teenagers to test the validity of previously held opinions and to form new points of view and/or to reinforce previously held ideological views with tangible evidence, not just unsubstantiated opinion,” Conroy said.

Finally, the club provides a space for students to expand their knowledge of the world and society. Many students said they were glad that they could learn about current events in their free time.

“I think it’s great that PACE is a place to hold open discussions about current events without being limited by a 42-minute class period,” senior Isaac Moldofsky said.

For students who enjoy participating in political discussions, discussing current events, and debating controversial topics, the Political Affairs and Current Events Club is the place to be. It is located in room 2015 meets Tuesdays after school at 3:45 p.m.

Editor’s Note: This is the thirteenth in a series of 19 stories about last semester’s Principal’s Recognition  Award winners who were recognized on Wednesday, Dec. 2 for outstanding achievement in specific programs. Junior Senaid Cutric received the Mathematics Award and was nominated by Ms. Tayyaba Ahmad and Ms. Kathleen Brandes

Peering into Ms. Tayyaba Ahmad and Ms. Kathleen Brandes‘ geometry class, you would see junior Senaid Cutric. He’s not only working on improving his own skills, but trying to teach others as well.

“Senaid is a leader in the classroom, and his motivation is contagious. He has made great mathematical improvements in the last two years,” Ahmad said.

Seeing his positive attitude and leadership abilities, there was no question that Ahmad and Brandes should nominate Cutric for this award.

“When I was told about the award I was surprised, I really didn’t see it coming. But it feels really great that I’ve been able to accomplish fixing all my past mathematical mistakes,” Cutric said.

Being able to correct your past mistakes and keep up with current work can be challenging for some students but this problem may be easily solved when using the correct methods.

“Studying and keeping up with my homework helps me do well on tests and to keep my grades up. Doing so in a positive manner always makes things easier and keeps you motivated along the way,” Cutric said.

Previous installment in the Principal’s Recognition Award series

Joshua Sirbu  –  http://www.nileswestnews.org/features/principals-recognition-award-joshua-sirbu/

Editor’s Note: This is the eighth in a series of ten stories on celebrating International Week.

We sat down with Niles West Physical welfare director Joaquin Stephenson and asked him a few questions about his culture and his experiences.

“I love the values and complexity that being Latino comes with, a blended nation like the United States, I feel like I navigate 2 different worlds, the American norm and the Mexican American values I was raised with. I embrace and I appreciate it,” Stephenson said.

Growing up in an American Mexican household has shaped him into becoming the hardworking, humble person he is today. He said is was always full of life, love, dancing, food, color, vibrancy, passion and honoring the expectation of an advance education.

Stephenson says his mother is a great baker and his favorite dish that she makes is Mexican cookies which are called, pastel de tres leches, “the cake of three milks.”

Stephenson said he lives to make his families lives better. He is deeply influenced by his inspiration Mahatma Gandhi and hopes to empower people and make them become the best versions of themselves.

“I want to make sure my family and future generations know that their is no glass ceiling for them. Everyone’s journey will be different, and how we navigate success may look different,” he said.

Growing up in an Mexican American household has truly shaped him into the great person he is today, and he continues to show Niles West that with hard-work and dedication, anything is possible.