2022 February – The Mirror

Humans of Northwood: Henry Gibson ’25

February 5, 2022 by Mitchell Baker

“I was born in North Carolina, near Ashville. I grew up with a passion for soccer and I enjoyed playing for my local club. My dream is to play professional soccer because I love it. In my free time I enjoy learning about cars, reading and watching Netflix. I also spend time with my 3 brothers and 2 sisters. I decided to come to Northwood because I heard really good things about the soccer program here, I also heard the academics were good as well; it was exactly what I was looking for. So far, my time has been good. I am really enjoying the high level of soccer and am looking forward to the rest of the season.”

As told to Mitchell Baker. (25. Photo by Mitchell Baker ’25)

Filed Under: Northwood Life, People

Art Teacher Goes Back to School for MFA

February 4, 2022 by Conrad Katzander

Northwood’s art teacher Ms. Van Slyke is going attending graduate school at the Savannah college for Art and Design to get her Master in Fine Arts (MFA) in painting. She is pursuing this ambitious goal while she is still teaching her art classes at Northwood.

Staff writer Conrad Katzander ‘22, and artist himself, spoke to Van Slyke about her experience.

Katzander: Why did you decide to go back to art school?

Van Slyke: I’ve been a professional artist for many, many years, but I always wanted a deeper understanding of why I do the art that I do. I also believe that no matter what your age, you should never stop learning and growing as an artist.

How has grad school changed your art?

My art has changed a lot because I am now working much larger and working with one cohesive body of work.

Do you like being a student and a teacher?

Yes, because the best way to learn something is to teach it as well.

What types of things are you learning at school?

Every semester I take a painting class. I’ve also taken graduate drawing, art history, art criticism, and MFA self-promotion. Next year I will start working towards my thesis. I have also had two internships.

Ms. Ingrid Van Slyke working on a painting. (Photo provided)

What things have you learned in your school that you have been applying to the classes that you teach?

In painting specifically, it is that as painters you need to have a plan before you start your painting. Having drawings and sketches as well as color studies and then developing it on the canvas is very useful.

As I student, I have learned how valuable it is when teachers make expectations clear for their students. I’ve learned from seeing how other art teachers teach differently.

How far along are you with your MFA and how do you take your classes?

Its online schooling. I’m four years in and I have one more year to go. I take one course at a time during the schoolyear and two classes in the summer.

Filed Under: Northwood Life, People, Top Story

Humans of Northwood: Turner Jackson ’23

February 4, 2022 by Mitchell Baker

I was born in Charlotte, North Carolina but grew up in Hong Kong. Growing up in Hong Kong was fantastic, I experienced different cultures and religions. It was a safe environment that allowed me to run through the streets independent and free. I matured and became independent because of these past experiences. I decided to come to Northwood at 15 to challenge myself in a new environment and to develop on and off the [soccer] field. In my free time, I speak to family and watch college or NFL football. My favorite subjects are Physics and History. I am extremely passionate about, soccer but my main goal in life is to find something that makes me happy and live a fulfilling life. My time here at Northwood has been pleasant; everyone has made me feel welcome, I have made lifelong friendships and I am really enjoying it here.

As told to Mitchell Baker ’25. Photo by Mr. Michael Aldridge.

Filed Under: Northwood Life, People

Two-Factor Authentication Comes to Northwood

February 2, 2022 by Colter Cheney-Seymour

The return from winter break marked a new era for Northwood’s online security with the launch of Duo, a two-factor authentication program that requires Northwood users to authenticate on their phone when they login to Microsoft products like Teams, Office, and Outlook.

Two-factor authentication is the simplest, most effective way to make sure users really are who they say they are. The program Duo was added to prevent the hacks widely reported at government, university and business and to ensure more reliable and safer online experience for Northwood students and staff.

Duo is used in schools, companies or organizations wishing to have enhanced cybersecurity. The program ensures security by asking the owner of the device to accept access into their personal accounts every time they log in. For the Northwood community this is used whenever a student or faculty member uses their Outlook or Teams app. For example, if a student opens Outlook, Duo will redirect them to their app and ask if they are the one trying to access Outlook. Upon approval, the student can go back to their email and continue safely. The Duo app is found in the Apple App Store or on Google Play and can be linked easily with students’ Northwood accounts.

Northwood’s Technology Director Jeffrey Martin managed the launch of Duo at Northwood. “As part of our security overhaul, we upgraded our MFA platform to Duo Security. Duo is very secure, reliable and easy to use.” Martin thinks Duo is well-suited for Northwood’s needs. “It also offers a flexible approach that allows us to better support our diverse student body both on campus and remotely around the world,” Martin said. In adopting the Duo technology, “we have almost completely eliminated security breaches on our user accounts and greatly improved our ability to protect users from identity theft,” Martin said.

Security is the main goal of adding DUO however for some students it is seen as tedious. Adding another step to entering a student’s outlook can seem annoying at first, however when consider the security it ensures it is a small price to pay.

Filed Under: Northwood Life

COVID Outbreak Hits Soccer Team Hardest

February 2, 2022 by Colter Cheney-Seymour

Tuesday, January 11th marked a unfortunate situation for the Northwood soccer program. That day began with breakfast and a routine all-school COVID test, but by dinnertime, ten soccer players were positive, effectively putting the U17 and U19 soccer teams on pause. A half dozen students were positive on the first day. A week later, twenty-two soccer players had tested positive.

In response, coaches canceled all trainings for a week while the student-athletes recovered in 5-day quarantines. Northwood’s health center worked tirelessly to insure each infected player who couldn’t go home had a safe space to quarantine whether that be on the on campus infirmary or in hotels located close by.
Thankfully, this outbreak didn’t force a pause of other athletic programs, which is remarkable considering almost 60% of the soccer program became infected in the first weeks of the new year. That’s not to say other parts of the school haven’t seen positive cases. In fact, approximately one-third of students and employees have tested positive since Christmas Eve.

The soccer team has recovered, after a long week of quarantining, things have returned to close to normal. The U19 team even won a tournament in Burlington VT the week after most of the team was released from isolation.