2023 November – The Mirror

Students Share Thanksgiving Plans

November 18, 2023 by Gavin Kruger

It is safe to say everyone at Northwood is itching for November 16^th, the beginning of Thanksgiving break. While many North American students are going home to see family, there are numerous international students who are not going home. I spoke to students who can see family and those who are staying with a friend or teammate.

Some of Northwoods’ international students are spending the break with one of their teammates. This is the case for Anthony “Tony” Wan ‘26, who is spending the break with teammate Sam Knauf ‘24. Wan, a U17 soccer winger who hails from China, is not returning home until the school year’s end. His plan for this Thanksgiving break is to stay with “Magic” Sam. “I’m looking forward to it,” he said.

Many Northwood skiers will not have a chance to see family either, as they are in Austria. I spoke with Marcos Alvarez ‘26, in his case, he will have a chance to see his family, as they are coming to see him in Austria. “For me, I am super excited to be skiing in Austria with the team, my family is coming to see me as well, so I am super excited.”

Other students, such as superstar attacker Said El-Eyssami ‘26, are going to vacation spots to spend their time. Said has earned his vacation, scoring twenty goals so far for Northwood’s U17 and U19 teams. The U19 starter explained to me that he was going to Miami. “I’m going to Miami with my family, and I am taking Camilo and Elm with me. We’re going to stay at an apartment, we rented it for the week. And, yeah, excited to get back to the heat, to the tropical climate and enjoy; enjoy the beach, and the warm city.”

American students able to go home over the break, are excited for Thanksgiving. I spoke to Anna Monnette ‘26. “I can’t wait for the break. I’m going home to Malone, New York. I’m looking forward to hanging out with my friends and family. And I’m going hunting with my brother. Thanksgiving is big thing at my house, we celebrate by all our family coming over, we have a big meal, then we play cards and watch National Lampoons Christmas vacation.”

Filed Under: Northwood Life, People

First Snow for Student and Faculty from Warm-Climates

November 16, 2023 by Maegan Byrne

Said El Eyssami ’26 taking in his first snow outside the Northwood School Innovation Hub on Main in October 2023. Photo: Maegan Byrne ’24.

“It’s really beautiful,” said Said El Eyssami ’26 on a cold Monday recently while seeing snow for the first time. The first snowfall is a big event on campus, and seeing snow for the first time is “exciting,” said Mr. Jose Coss, who also experienced his first snow.

When the fire alarm sounded at the Hub during a Language Lab event on Monday, October 30^th, students evacuated to the sidewalk and waited for the Fire Department to allow them back in. While outside, it began to snow for the first time this year, which added a celebratory vibe to the false alarm.

Mr. Coss is from Puerto Rico. This was his first time seeing really solid snow. He had seen snow briefly while living a year abroad in Spain near Sierra Nevada. While there, he had a day of snow that “wasn’t anything like the big snow that we saw a couple of days ago.”

Said El Eyssami ’26 (left) and Mr. Jose Coss during their first snow outside the Northwood School Innovation Hub on Main in October 2023. Photo: Maegan Byrne ’24.

“I have mixed feelings about the snow,” said Coss. “Being from the Caribbean, I’m used to very hot weather. Right now, back home, it is 95 degrees. I feel really cold, but it’s still exciting. I think there is beauty in everything, so when I opened the door the other day and saw everything in white, it was beautiful.” Coss is also excited to try winter sports, such as skiing and skating. “It’s exciting. It’s a new experience, and one should thrive in it.”

Said is from Venezuela and hadn’t seen snow before last week. “It was really fun!” he said. A few days after it snowed more during the soccer boy’s practice. Said described training in the snow as “beautiful.”

“It was really beautiful to see the town covered in snow, the pitch covered in snow, and the school covered in snow, and I’m really excited to see more snow.” As one of many students coming from warm-weather locations, Said is not looking forward to how cold it will get once winter sets in. However, he is excited to try new things this winter. “I want to try skiing, sledding, and maybe skating,” he said.

Filed Under: Northwood Life, Top Story

Humans of Northwood: Ashley Guevara ‘24

November 16, 2023 by Avery Novia

I’m a senior at Northwood, and I’m on my way to being a four-year survivor! I live in New Jersey, and I am currently in the Northwood Outing Club and the Ski and Snowboard Club. I used to row for the crew team up until my junior year.

When I’m not at school, I like to go out with my friends to New York City and look for new places to eat and food to try. I love to read, watch movies, and crochet; I am also a big runner. Since it gets so cold in the Adirondacks, I don’t get to run as much as when I am home when it is warmer.

I found Northwood through a school search website in middle school. My family wanted me to be at boarding school, and since I grew up in the city, they wanted me to go somewhere I could be around nature and experience the outdoors, so Northwood was perfect.

Throughout my four years, my most memorable experience has been learning how to ski. In my sophomore year, my friends and I decided to join the Northwood Ski and Snowboard Club. We had no expectations going into it, but I found out that I really enjoyed skiing.

Northwood has taught me a lot, but the most important thing I have learned is how to appreciate nature and the outdoors. It has taught me that there are bigger things in life than just the trivial things that don’t matter in the end because the world is so big, and we are so tiny.

I am most looking forward to cherishing the time I have left before graduation. I can’t wait to have more experiences with my friends and be done with the college process. As much as I am excited to graduate, I am going to miss the memories I have made during my time here. After graduation, I plan to work at a summer camp with my friend, Jazlyn Lluberes ’23, and travel to different countries. On top of that, I will prepare for college and see where the next four years of my life take me!

As told to Avery Novia ’24. Photo by Mr. Michael Aldridge.

Filed Under: Northwood Life, People

Humans of Northwood: Teagan Wentzel ‘24

November 16, 2023 by Jordan Shullenberger

I grew up in Gqeberha, South Africa, but in 2018, my family moved to Lake Placid. I live with my parents, and I have an older sister in college. We moved to Lake Placid because we had been visiting during the winter for my sister’s hockey and my figure skating, and we decided that Northwood would be a good place for both of us.

I’m very passionate about activities that express my emotions like dancing, figure skating, and music. When I express myself through dance, I feel free and happy, and overall, it’s a lot of fun for me. I’m also passionate about hard work. I will work hard and try my best for something that I want. There are a lot of things you can’t control in life, but effort is definitely something you can control.

Something I’d like people to know about me is that I am friendly, and I like talking to people. I really like hearing people’s life stories because it shows who they are as people, and why they are the way they are.

As told to Jordan Shullenberger ’24. Photo by Jordan Shullenberger ’24.

Filed Under: Northwood Life, People

Humans of Northwood: Renaud Lalancette ‘24

November 16, 2023 by Jordan Shullenberger

I’m a senior here at Northwood. I’m from the North Shore of Montreal. I have an older brother and a younger sister whom I’m very close with. I came to Northwood because I wanted to go to prep school for hockey, and I found out about Northwood from some friends who went here and some people who were affiliated with the school.

I’m very passionate about hockey, and I’ve been playing since I was 4 years old. It’s a life-long passion and I’ve dedicated my life to it. I want to play in college and maybe pro. I’m also very passionate about personal development. I’m very interested in health, nutrition, mindset stuff (meditation and spirituality), and overall personal development. My life-long goal is to achieve my maximum potential as a human.

Something that I want people to know about me is that I might come off as rude, but that’s not me at all. Sometimes my resting face or the way I respond to questions can make me seem a little bit intense, but that’s just me being focused or thinking about something. I’m very friendly, and I like talking to new people. I don’t take myself too seriously and I like having a laugh and enjoying myself.

As told to Jordan Shullenberger ’24. Photo: Jordan Shullenberger ’24.

Filed Under: Northwood Life, People

Humans of Northwood: Sophia Miller ‘24

November 16, 2023 by Avery Novia

My name is Sophia Miller, I was born and raised in Sun Valley, Idaho. For 7 years of my life, I was a ski racer. I practiced 6 days a week for 3 hours a day. I enjoyed the sport, but it eventually got to a point of such high competitiveness that I didn’t have fun with it anymore. After I stopped racing, I decided that I was just going to focus on playing soccer, which I played for 3 years.

After only attending schools in Idaho, I came to Northwood so that I could better my academics and experience a different kind of learning than what I was used to. Although they are such different places, I enjoy the similarities that Idaho and Lake Placid share. I enjoy the accessibility to the mountains, and how close they are. Growing up, the mountain I skied at was only 5 minutes away. I also enjoy the aspect of teams and team bonding. Everybody at Northwood is very close with their teams, and at my school in Idaho, it was the same way.

I am most looking forward to hearing back from the schools I have applied to, and figuring out what my plan is going to be for the next four years. I’m excited to start skiing on Whiteface this winter with the Northwood Ski and Snowboard Club, and I am looking forward to getting back outside again.

As told to Avery Novia ’24. Photo by Mr. Michael Aldridge.

Filed Under: Northwood Life, People

Mixed opinions About Winter Schedule

November 16, 2023 by Avery Novia

It’s the time of the year when the days are shorter, and the weather gets colder. At Northwood, this means that it is time to switch over to our winter schedule. Instead of having co-curricular activities in the afternoon after classes, we switch it up and have co-curricular before our academic day begins.

The winter schedule features co-curricular activities in the morning most days with classes beginning after lunch.

If you ask around the community, you will get mixed opinions about the winter schedule, some good, others bad. To get some further insight into how our school is feeling about starting the new schedule next week, I asked three students for their opinions.

Junior Sophia Sherma says that she doesn’t “despise winter schedule, but it isn’t as good as the fall schedule.” Sophia is a NOC athlete and is also a part of the NSSC (Northwood Ski and Snowboard Club). She is “stoked” to start getting out on the mountain again. Snowboarding in the morning helps her mood throughout the day and her social life thrives, but her academic motivation is lowered throughout the season.

Emma Hathaway, a senior independent and day student, says that her schedule isn’t affected much by the switch, but it is harder for her to get to and from school since she lives far away. Since Emma commutes each day, she does “not have the same luxury of sleeping in like the boarding students.”

The last student I interviewed was Maya Wissler. Maya is a dancer, a day student, and a junior. Maya doesn’t like winter schedule for the same reasons as Emma. She lives in Saranac Lake and since her parents are busy, she has a tough time finding all the rides she needs between school and dance. Maya says, “I have no time to get much done, it can be very tiring to go from the end of school straight to practice.” Although some days she is able to sleep in, she doesn’t enjoy the winter schedule.

By talking amongst my peers, I have come to the conclusion that the independent students at our school have a harder time adjusting to the new schedule. I have heard more positive feelings from a lot of the hockey players who feel like they have more time to get stuff done.

Besides the time changes, a big part of the changing schedule is time management. For a lot of students, it takes around a month or so to get back into the groove of school after the schedule change. Getting organized while trying to balance sports and schoolwork can be very tough. The change in schedule makes staying on track a bit more difficult since it flips our whole day around.

To shed some well-deserved light on the winter schedule, I have found that it has a lot of positive effects. Starting the day with exercise can benefit the quality of the day. It keeps you energized and can get you in a good mood. If students are stressed, it gives them some time to blow off steam before they have to worry about a quiz, test, or other school-related stressors. In conclusion, changing to Northwood’s winter schedule is a challenge to overcome, but it will end with a positive result.

Filed Under: Northwood Life

Coming Soon: New Flag Football League

November 16, 2023 by Lea Lambert

Northwood Flag Football League. Logo designed by Sebastian Pribula ’24.

Flag football saw its debut in the 1930s in the military. It was the perfect way for cadets to stay fit and play one of the most popular games in the country without getting injured. Last year, flag football was shortlisted as a proposed discretionary event for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, and now flag football is an official Olympic sport. It seems very appropriate now that Northwood should have its own league, being situated in an Olympic town.

I remember when I first visited Northwood, I saw a soccer turf, and I knew right away football was not something popular here, but I wanted to make it a thing. In my first year here, we casually played around with a football, but I was hoping for more. Last summer, when I was in Quebec, I played in a five-against-five mix league, and that’s when I knew Northwood needed flag football.

Julianne Brochu ’25 (left) and NFFL found Lea Lambert ’24. Photo provided.

The Northwood Flag Football League will include approximately ten teams of five. Each team would be made of three boys and two girls, and each team would have a captain. Playing five against five would allow us to play multiple games at once on the indoor turf. The five-player team includes an offense made of a quarterback, a snap, and three receivers. The defense is made up of one rusher, one safety, a mike, and 2 defensives players.

After having all the teams set, I plan to have a meeting in the auditorium to specify the rules so that we don’t have to deal with confusion in the middle of a real game.

This is strictly for fun, and everyone should participate because my one and only goal is to create a sense of unity (the school theme for the 2023-24 year) between students.

Filed Under: Northwood Life, Sports

Investing Club Helps Students Learn to Build Wealth

November 16, 2023 by Maegan Byrne

Northwoods Investment Club focuses on making investing more accessible for students. Wyatt Wardlaw ‘24 is one of the founders and leader of the investment club. A similar club was previously run a few years ago by Kendin Basden ‘22 and Slater Loffredo ‘22. The year after they graduated, Wyatt noticed no one was continuing the club and decided to run one himself with the help of Mr. Garvey. This year, Wyatt wanted the club to grow more and decided to link his Peak Pathways Project to help more students gain investing experience.

Wyatt’s goal for the year is to start by helping students learn about the process and research different stocks. He hopes to eventually run meetings where everyone can analyze or talk about what’s happening that week in the market. The club is currently student-run, but Wyatt hopes to find a faculty member like Mr. Martinez who can help bring more knowledge to the group.

“I hope everyone can get more excited about investing and learning about the process,” Wardlaw said. The club consists of 10 students varying in investing experience.

“I’m excited to learn an introduction to investing,” said Sophia Schupp, ’24.

Filed Under: Northwood Life

NFL: Week 10 Recap

November 16, 2023 by Gus Garvey

Panthers 13, Bears 16

A glorious game between two atrocities on Thursday Night Football. Yes, it’s a primetime TANK BOWL!

What a disaster of a game. Who thought it would be a good idea to give the Bears not one, not two, not three but four primetime games this year? This team is a joke. They’re fortunate in that they’re playing yet another disaster in Carolina or this game wouldn’t have even been close. I think this game will finally reveal Carolina to be the complete tire fire that they are. What a disaster. Bryce Young just got outplayed by a guy who was playing Division 2 a year ago. They have fallen to dead last in the league, and Frank Reich may be on the hot seat already.

Colts 10, Patriots 6

Whoever didn’t see this coming was delusional. Two bad teams flown halfway around the world and forced to play on a jet lagged sleep schedule. Of course, it was terrible. All the international games have been awful this year, but this one was special. Good old-fashioned hard-nosed football was the name of the game here. The Patriots ran 54 plays and 36 of them were rushes. Indy? At least they got a touchdown early? The rest of the game was just sheer ugliness. Hey look, here’s a late drive from Mac to win the game! Too bad, since he decided to imitate Famous Jameis by throwing it directly to a Colts defender. This should have ended the game, but remember what team we’re dealing with. The Colts offense consists of a bunch of wet plywood. They failed to do anything with the ball. New England has it back at the 2 minute warning. It is here that a change is made. In comes the savior. Bailey Zappe. As he throws a pick into triple coverage on a fake spike. If that play isn’t emblematic of this Patriots’ season, I don’t know what is. Panic has set in as they fall to dead last in the AFC at 2-8. Even old Bill might be on the hot seat. How did this team beat Buffalo again?

Browns 33, Ravens 31

The opening salvo was fired on the first drive. Pick-six for the Ravens and Kyle Hamilton. This was going to be a spectacle. The Ravens have blown out teams far greater than Cleveland this season. The Browns were a mere bump on the road that needed to be overcome. It got dicey at times, but they were holding their own against a good defense with a 31-17 lead deep in the 4th quarter. Wouldn’t you know it, an old friend stopped by M&T to say hi. The Ravens proceeded to blow the game through a combination of turnovers and bad defense. Say what you will about Cleveland, but the Ravens choked again. This was a game the Browns had no business even competing in, but Baltimore not only kept them in it, they actively handed them the game? Even worse? Cleveland and Pittsburgh are now only a half-game back of 1st place. And they both have tiebreakers. That division you thought you had locked up? It just became a jungle again. All I’m going to say is that their game on Thursday against the Bungles is now a must-win.

Packers 19, Steelers 23

All I’m going to say is this: The Steelers are the most undeserving 6-3 team in NFL history. Once again, they were pitted against a mediocre opponent. Once again, they played down to their competition as the offense played lower than the Mariana Trench. Once again, it came down to their final play. Once again, the defense moved mountains in order to secure victory. While 6-3 is a good record, I have severe doubts about this team’s sustainability at the next level. Next week is a crucial game against Cleveland for possible AFC North supremacy. Get it done, Steelers. We’re all counting on you.

49ers 34, Jaguars 3

During the bye, the Niners reached down and acquired a potential generational talent at edge-rusher from Washington. Chase Young is now a 49er. Reunited with his former Buckeye teammate Nick Bosa, the two are looking for blood. It doesn’t matter if it’s a good team in Jacksonville, those two will wreak havoc on anything resembling a quarterback’s sanity. 5 sacks and under 60 rushing yards on the day, a truly dominant performance. Jacksonville is lucky in that the rest of their division excluding Houston is a dumpster fire. Speaking of Houston…

Texans 30, Bengals 27

If the last two weeks are any sign, CJ Stroud has a bright future in this league. With that system around him, plus DeMeco Ryans’s defense, the Texans have everything they need to turn him into a superstar. He’s already putting up borderline MVP numbers. This week, that kind of performance came against not a bad team like the Bucs, but a legit contender in the Bengals. The Texans D had their way with Cincy for most of the game, despite a late game comeback to tie the game. This was where Stroud proved how good he is by leading the Texans on a long field goal drive to seal the game. How does it feel to be the victim of another team’s legit statement win, Bungles? Does it feel bad? I think we both know the answer to that question.

Titans 6, Buccaneers 20

The Will Levis era might be over and it’s not even 3 games in yet. He had his first true “rookie” game in the NFL today. It happens, it’s when a quarterback looks completely lost against a stout D, the usual growing pains. Levis wasn’t completely awful, but he sure didn’t inspire that much confidence as Tampa cruised to victory. I don’t know what to think of the Bucs. Yes, their defense is solid, but their offense is flat at best. They have a shot at their division thanks to how bad it is, but I just don’t know if Mayfield can piece together some consistent efforts to accomplish that.

Saints 19, Vikings 27

We currently live in a world where Josh Dobbs looks better under center than most of the regular starters that played this week. He put together another dynamite performance against the Saints today. Don’t look now, but Minnesota is 6-4 having won 5 in a row. Next week is a critical game against a Broncos team looking better than ever. This will be Dobbs’s first true test against a real defense. I’m counting on him to get it done.

Lions 41, Chargers 38

This game says more about the Chargers than it does about Detroit. Despite Justin Herbert’s best efforts, they still couldn’t make a defensive stop to save their lives. When you drop 38 points on an opponent at home, you usually end up winning the game. Not these guys. As the weeks go by, I’m wondering more and more how Brandon Staley was seen as a defensive mastermind. This guy can’t scheme! How much was he carried by Aaron Donald? It’s getting to the point where it’s all but a given that they’ll fail! Detroit, here is your statement win. It comes with a side of laughing at all 13 Charger fans still bought into the team.

Falcons 23, Cardinals 25

Arthur Smith is a hack. This game proved it. Yet another game where they underutilize their best offensive weapons against a team without that great of a defense. Combine this with midget man Kyler Murray being out on the field and it leads to an embarrassing loss for Atlanta. Despite the new Call of Duty coming out, he still looked dialed, leading Arizona to a huge upset against a team desperately needing to win. Atlanta, if you weren’t in such a bad division, you’d be out of the playoffs by now. Get it together.

Giants 17, Cowboys 49

I will now list the positives for the Giants from this game: They scored points. That is all. The rest was the usual song and dance for the G-men. Tommy DeVito got thrown to the wolves and eaten alive all afternoon by the Cowboys defense. Their offense once again dominated all day, as Dallas cruised to a blowout victory. New York, it might be time to fire up the tanks once again.

Commanders 26, Seahawks 29

People might be surprised that Seattle let Washington hang around in this one for way too long. What they do not realize is that they’re the same tier of team. The problem with Washington is that they’re less consistent than their west coast counterpart, hence the worse record. Both quarterbacks were excellent today, but Geno Smith managed to pull it together in the second half and lead the Seahawks to victory over the Commies, keeping pace for the AFC West. Seattle isn’t a super bowl contender, not by any stretch of the imagination, but they’re much improved from last year. On the flip side, how is Ron Rivera still employed again?

Jets 12, Raiders 16

The reeling Raiders have found just the antidote to curing their woes: facing off against the Mistakes from East Rutherford at home. Last week, it was the Giants, and this week, the Jets. New York’s offense could get nothing going all night long as the Raiders did just enough to solve their defense and escape with a win. The sad part is that if the Jets had anything resembling a competent QB and offensive line, they’d be super bowl contenders. That defense is one of the best in football, yet their offense continues to let them down every single week. Raiders, welcome back to .500. I’m not even close to saying you deserve it, but props for turning your season around. You see that opponent you have next week? You folks would turn a lot of heads if you upset them. Good luck, Vegas. We’re all counting on you.

Broncos 24, Bills 22

I know I said I would separate this game if the Bills lost. I don’t have the energy to do it. We’ll keep this one short and simple, just like Buffalo’s offense did on most drives in this game by turning the ball over. 4 times to be exact. You might expect me to yell and rant about the coaching staff, but I won’t. They’ve finally taken action. Ken Dorsey has been fired. I repeat. Ken Dorsey has been axed. The Bills will no longer be doing their trademark draw plays from the 1 yard line. They’ll be doing them from the 5 yard line instead with Joe Brady as the interim coordinator. Promoting from within and learning nothing. Just bring in Payton Manning. Anything would be better than the guys we have right now.

Laughingstock of the Week

I think we all know who my pick would be if this was going to an NFL team this week. Unfortunately, events in the college ranks override this. This week’s laughingstock is the entire Texas A&M Football program. Specifically, in the events surrounding head coach Jimbo Fisher. It’s been a tough year for A&M, as they already have 4 losses and aren’t even ranked. The time has come for the board to clean house. Jimbo Fisher has been fired as head coach of Texas A&M. This is embarrassing for multiple reasons. First, when Fisher was hired, the board presented him with a blank plaque for a national championship. Fisher never won any noteworthy hardware while head coach. This is also going to hurt their wallets, too. The school still owes Fisher over $70 million as part of his buyout agreement. We can get into how ridiculous it is that state employees are getting paid $70 million later, but the bottom line is that this is a huge black eye on the A&M program. They’re at a point where they’re about to replace Vanderbilt as resident SEC doormat in a couple years. None of the top recruits are going to want to be Aggies, especially with the expansion of the Big 10 to include 4 very strong programs. I can’t say they don’t deserve it, though.