By David Pemstein, Volume 24 November 21, 1984 South’s class of 1985 boasts the highest decile cut-off points since 1971, when the school began keeping annual records.  These usually high grade point averages have become a source of concern to many seniors.  However, Dr. Margaret Addis, head of the Guidance Department, feels that the higher decile cutoffs are actually assets to the students. Addis believes that any interpretation of statistical data is entirely ...

By Alex Schneider, Volume 46 April 13, 2006 Pressure.  The word certainly does not justify the long hours juniors and seniors spend nationwide applying to colleges in a process that never seems to end. Regardless of the overwhelming odds, the director of South’s college and career counseling resource center, Barbara Brown, explains that, “for the most part, kids get into their first choice of school.” “We have very motivated students here,” Brown said, “and we ...

By Denebola Staff, Volume 18 April 25, 1979 82.3 percent of Newton South’s graduating class of 1978 continued their education. Wellesley and Brookline tied at 80 percent  Newton North came in with 68 percent. Apparently there are many adults with no college education at all. If this is true, then why do so many of South’s students react with surprise when a classmate of theirs decides not to follow in everyone else’s footsteps ...

By Jonathan Zaff, Volume 29 November 23, 1989 The time has come once again when seniors visit colleges, have interviews with prospective schools, and sit down with their word processors to hack out their many dreaded college essays.  At this point in the year, the pressure put on seniors is incredible.  Senior Mike Taylor attests, “We are overly pressured by our parents and Newton South to get into the best college ...

By Sam Lanckton, Volume 32 December 23, 1992 The disappointing thing is that I’m not bitter anymore. I used to thrive on bitterness, it was what got me through the day. I would wake up in the morning and think about how much I didn’t want to go to school. Then I would go to school and think about how much I didn’t want to live in Newton. Then I would go home ...

By Debbie Andelman and Lani Wishnie, Volume 22 February 16, 1983 Pla-gia-rism (plá jə-ris m) n. The act of stealing and using the ideas or writings of another as ones own (derived from the Latin word ‘plajiarius,’ meaning ‘kidnapper’).  As Dorethea Gaudet, librarian at Newton South High School states, “Plagiarism is the greatest crime in the academic world.” Although everyone may not feel so strongly about the issue of plagiarism, the fact is that ...

By Michael Fuchs, Volume 50 February 15, 2011 Cheating—all students have seen it, most can say they’ve been tempted to do it, and some may confess to having done it.  Regardless of whether students agree with the principle of cheating, many will not deny that taking a peek at a peer’s test can translate into short-term academic success.  Science teacher Jordan Kraus, however, sees cheating differently. “I don’t think we’re doing students a ...

By Stephanie Simon, Volume 25 November 28, 1985 This year, there is only one girl in the Advanced Placement BC Calculus course. There is only one girl in AP Physics, and one in AP Chemistry. There are no girls in advanced computer classes. According to Warren Manhard, head of the NSHS math department, there are many reasons for the paucity of girls in high-level science and mathematics classes. He believes that one explanation ...

By Leigh Alon, Volume 50 February 15, 2011 In comparison to his days teaching science in the 70s, science department head Charles Hurwitz has noticed a significant shift in the number of girls taking AP science courses at South. Today, girls make up 53 percent of AP Biology classes, 37 percent of AP Physics classes, and 27percent of AP Chemistry classes, up from about one to three girls enrolled in each of ...

What is your favorite part about teaching? I love sharing things that I love with people whom I genuinely enjoy spending time with. It’s a win-win situation for me, and sometimes I feel like the luckiest guy on earth. I mean, in my Senior Film Studies class, we get to spend five weeks discussing, debating, deconstructing, and dissecting Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo, which is one of the most profound and mystifying films ever made. We get to watch and discuss Orson Welles’ Citizen Kane. We get to read Shakespeare’s Hamlet. These are texts that I would be spending tons of time with anyway--as a teacher, I get to really dive in. And I feel so privileged to accompany my students as they encounter these brilliant, mysterious, gorgeous, problematic texts for the first time (even if they don’t always love--or get--them the first time around!).