By Elise Guillen and Agape Alfaro

Many who care about Steinmetz have noticed with each passing year that Steinmetz is slowly decreasing in value. This editorial is not meant to bash Steinmetz, but rather criticize the school in order to improve it. We love Steinmetz and have a deep concern for it.

It’s also worth noting that there is no specific group to point out and to blame why Steinmetz is going in a bad direction. It is rather a combination of people, thus proving there needs to be a group effort from students, teachers, staff and CPS to make sure Steinmetz has the future it deserves.

Lack of organization. When planning events, there is disorganization due to the lack of communication. For example, this year the seniors had no idea when graduation practice would happen or when they would receive things such as caps and gowns or even graduation tickets because no one was telling them anything. Also, when there are events happening at the school, students rarely hear about them until they happen.

Lack of involvement from staff and students. There are only certain staff and students who are constantly involved at Steinmetz and it’s very easy to pick them out.

The Star encourages more students and staff to get involved at Steinmetz to allow other people to see the great things Steinmetz offers and to get even more people to be excited and involved in the school. There’s so much to do besides academics. Since there’s not enough student involvement and even lack of teacher involvement, this leads to the next point.

Extra curriculars diminishing. Lately, since people are not getting involved as much, clubs are dying. There are barely any extracurriculars besides sports. There used to be drama club and a school play every year until this year. Four years ago the school was alive and buzzing with various activities to do after school, but now everyone just rushes out of the building and many clubs and sports are told to leave by a certain time while other schools are open late for students.

Funding to improve Steinmetz- There’s a difficulty getting funding from the school in order to get materials for club since administration doesn’t allow things like fundraisers, which could really improve and benefit Steinmetz. Even sports struggle because of lack of money for buses.

Uniforms.  The Star has covered the uniform issue plenty of times and every time that we do, we always come back to the same consensus: Get rid of it.

The uniform is inconsistent and it’s ridiculous that the school has it. The way that the school enforces it is confusing considering it can only being enforced part of the time instead of all the time. One person could get called out for wearing jeans, but then the five people who are also not in uniform don’t get in trouble.

Then, the school makes a big deal of being out of uniform like it’s the worst thing ever. It isn’t. There are other student behavior problems that should be focused on, but get less attention since people are focused on the uniforms.

It also gives the community something to think about. Why did the other high schools in the area drop the uniform? Why is Steinmetz the only one left with it? Many think that the uniform gives the school a bad look because it’s associated with controlling bad students.

Having the uniform, despite many students being against it, shows that the students aren’t being listened to and they’re the ones being forced to wear it. When in reality, it’s limiting students’ creative expression and causing more problems than fixing them.

We understand the reasons for uniforms,  but they do nothing for student safety. We highly suggest requiring students to always wear their IDs as an alternative to identify Steinmetz students.

The high standards of rules yet the lack of enforcement of them. As stated before with uniform, there is a lack of proper discipline. One day staff with be on your case with being in proper uniform and the next day  everyone will turn a blind eye. Sometimes detentions will be handed out, but very few actually attend. And when people do show up to detention, it’s relaxed. People are talking or on their phone and will be able to leave after thirty minutes. Another issue is how teachers are told to write up students who misbehave, yet then they receive no discipline. At most, they receive a call home but that isn’t even proper discipline.

The quality of the bathrooms. This is not a bashing on how they are being cleaned. The cleaning crew has improved and works really hard. But the lack of fixing the overall bathrooms over the course of several years is deeply concerning. The murals outside the bathrooms make a student believe the bathrooms are just as nice inside but that’s not the case. Most of the bathrooms have damaged mirrors and some even have none. This is something students always complain about, but nothing has been done to fix the problem. As for the graffiti and quality of the stalls, there is not much to do about that. Except to possibly open the school up during the summer and let anyone from the community or even students help paint over the graffiti before the start of every school year.

The topics discussed have not only contributed to the population of Steinmetz decreasing, but have also made Steinmetz students less enthusiastic about school and not proud of where they attend.

There are other serious problems that are now beyond administration, students and staff’s hands, such as the lay-offs of our librarian Ms. Eshoo and amazing teachers Mr. Foster, Mr. Gonzalez and Ms. Meunier, as well as new schools being built nearby which will further decrease our enrollment and funding.

But there are many things that everyone at this school can work on. It truly starts with the people who attend or work at Steinmetz to create change and to make others aware of what Steinmetz is capable of.

If you’re reading this and you’re like us and care and worry about the future of Steinmetz, reevaluate what you could personally do to help give Steinmetz the future it deserves.

“Sense 8” is my favorite Netflix original show. I discovered it last October and it’s become one of my favorite shows of all time. The show follows eight people from all across the world who become Sensates–which allows for someone to have a connection with seven other people. This connection is a blessing and a curse, you feel what all these seven people feel, you are no longer just one person.

The show follows eight people in places ranging from Kenya to America. Each person has his or her own storyline. All the characters dramatically change once they realize the connection they have with their cluster – a group of eight people who are all connected. It’s hard to imagine that one day you’re living your normal life and suddenly you know another language and experience things in a completely different continent. That’s why the show is so interesting; it has a unique storyline that is able to show a range of characters from a variety of places.

What also makes this show so amazing is the  diversity. It features people all around the world and they speak different languages and live in different countries. This show really gives the viewer an insight into so many different cultures and lifestyles. The diversity is one of my favorite thing on the show. Diversity is great which many other shows lack it. Sense 8 is a show that will really open your eyes to the lack of diversity in so many shows because the diversity is so present in this show and is so crucial to the storyline.

The first season was so good and had me hooked since the first episode so I was very excited for the second season. This review is very general because I don’t want to risk spoiling this show – it’s that good that I feel like people should experience it fully. I recommended it to everyone I know and I still do to this day. I was excited for the second season but I expected it to be just as good as the first. I was wrong. It was even better.

The second season deals with the threat of being a sensate, something viewers discover in the first season but season two goes into it much more.  It also goes into a deeper explanation of what it’s like being a sensate and the origins of BPO, an organization that hunts and kills any Sensate they can find because they believe Sensates are a threat to society.

One of my favorite things about the new season was how the relationships within the cluster deepen and how they all grew close to the point where they are a family and rely on each other. The second season featured everything that made the first season great but somehow made it better.

Sense 8 has so many reasons why it’s a great show. But what ultimately makes me love it is how beautiful it is. The cinematography is gorgeous so the show always provides breathtaking shots.

The actors happen to be attractive yet they bring so much complexity to their characters showing that their acting is bound to be great because of the amazing characters they portray.

There’s so much beauty in seeing the world and this show shows it so well such as interactions between people all across the globe and featuring so many details of what it’s like to live in places like Kenya or India. Seeing cultures intertwine is so refreshing and really teaches viewers  that Hollywood doesn’t portray it well enough. It shows so many perspectives from the world that allows viewers to be open-minded while watching and that’s an important and beautiful thing.

The strong group of characters who grow a bond beyond blood is something anyone will want after watching the show. Lastly, the show is so smart in how builds a storyline that is able to tie in so many other amazing things to make one beautiful tv show.

Even though season 2 ended in a huge cliff-hanger, I loved it. But now, everything is different. While writing this review I found out that Sense 8, one of my favorite shows ever, was cancelled. I am still devastated. It was weird to think I would write a review to hopefully make people watch the show. But now, most likely if someone reads this, they’ll see it’s cancelled and wonder why they should even bother with watching it. I get that but, if I had never found this show I would be a lesser person.

That sounds really dramatic but I believe that TV Shows, movies or books can have a big impact. This show was one of the best shows I have ever seen. Netflix really messed up by cancelling it. I hope that there is still a possibility that the show can ever come back, I can get the answers that I have and watch the beauty that is Sense 8 again. But, it’s sadly unlikely.

I urge anyone to watch it. Join me and many fans in our sadness. Even though it’s over and incomplete, the show was an experience everyone should witness and if people opened themselves up to the idea of the show, they can easily fall in love with it.

“Agatha Rex” is a special play that can have an impact on students and motivate them to speak up when they may feel like their voice does not matter.

See the May-June 2017 Steinmetz Star for a complete review on Page 21.

“Agatha Rex” has factors that contribute to make it a great play but what makes the production special to me was knowing all the hard work put into it. I am very close with some of the people involved, like Steinmetz’s very first student director for a school play, Agape Alfaro.

I have known the struggle behind it all: from the worrying who would be the sponsor of it, what play they were going to do, who was going to audition and then all of the stress from it. I remember finding out Agape would be the director and just thinking, “Wow, it has come to this,” because no one was able to do it, yet Agape was doing everything in her power for Steinmetz to have a school play.

Teacher Jennifer Egan, Sammie Chaifi and Agape Alfaro in “Agatha Rex.” Photo by Steven Nunez.

Agape’s passion for theatre and having a school play is one of the reasons why having a drama club is so crucial. Fair warning. I will continue to mention Agape to show amazing she is.  I was asked by Agape the day before the play to be stage crew, something I’ve always wanted to do but never had enough time for. At first I was hesitant, but Agape told me I would be missing class in order to help out. Of course, that made it entirely more appealing especially since I had a history test. Yet, I also wanted to be responsible. So, with permission to take the test after Memorial Day weekend, I was officially a part of stage crew.

I was a little nervous but Agape told me I could learn the ropes in one day. But, when I arrived to perform my duty as stage crew, it became apparent that I wasn’t going to have to do much anyway. Lights and curtains were covered. I became the person to run errands but with the special title of “Stage Crew.” I gladly performed any task that was asked with me but not before proclaiming my title as “Stage Crew” as I went off to do my very important job and do it well. I really enjoyed being referred to as “Stage Crew” whenever I was needed and will always smile when I think of all of the little things I did, but how I was also able to be helpful in a very small way. I always acknowledge stage crew internally but now I have a deep appreciation for it after joining it for a day. The show of course can’t go on without the cast but also without the help of stage crew. Imagine how I would feel about being stage crew if I did it more than a day.

Another part of being stage crew is just sitting around and watching the cast and crew practice until you are needed but even the sitting around is fun. It’s real special to witness the preparation of everything and then actually seeing them perform what they’ve been working on for so long. You witness the struggle of an actor memorizing their lines perfectly, then the proudness you feel during the actual production when they don’t mess up the lines they were struggling with earlier and perform them perfectly.

It’s also fun to see the goofiness between the cast and the ease they are at with each other while at the same time being incredibly nervous for their first show of the night. You witness the reassurance and the encouragement between everyone and you root for them. Even if they do mess up, you know the advice they got earlier will stay with them. It’s a beautiful thing to witness and I think we should all have an internal drama club within us to get through our daily lives.

The leading up to the play was very exciting but the moments before the curtain opening during 7th period made me incredibly nervous. I was stage crew, yet I was nervous. I had witnessed everything they were about to show the entire school and I was excited but it was extremely nerve-wracking, I couldn’t imagine what it would have been like to be an actor. I decided to play stage crew for the 7-8th period performances but the only thing I had to worry about was switching roles for the night show to become an audience member in order to review the play. So, I soaked up every last moment of being Stage Crew.

Being behind the scenes is so cool but, it’s literally the perspective of behind the curtains. You don’t get to experience the possible rudeness of people around you, the laughter that can surround you or the view of the stage, good or bad. Maybe that sounds obvious to you, but it wasn’t to me until a few hours before the play started. I wouldn’t be able to be an audience member with the whole school when the reactions would be at its prime. I was a little disappointed but boy, was I excited to finally experience what it was like behind the curtains while the show is happening. One of the coolest things I experienced was Agape giving the cast one last pep talk before the curtained opened. Everyone paid close attention and absorbed her words. That’s when I realized how they looked up to her and how being a director really suited her. I was and still am a proud friend.

The minute the show started, it was game time. Once thing I learned from being backstage is how chaotic everything really is and how hilarious it is that the audience has no clue. There’s so much always going on that even though you’re back stage, you kind of have your own show going on. Even though the show is everywhere, there’s always something interesting to watch for. Despite from everything being chaotic, you are watching from the sidelines and cheering for the cast. It’s thrilling and nerve-wracking the entire time, there is never a dull moment. It’s such an interesting perspective that I’m very glad I was able to experience. I will never watch play ever again without wondering what is going on behind the curtains.

But one of my favorite parts of being a part of the whole stage crew experience is how I was able to view the perspective of the audience as well. I have never experience a certain call besides from being in the audience. The fact that I was able to just walk out on stage and to actually have the opportunity to take a bow just for running errands… I’ll never forget it. It’s an experience I never thought I would have and I’m fortunate that I was able to have it at least once.

It was bittersweet to become an audience member again but it was always comfortable. I didn’t have to worry or do anything but watch and to write a review later on. It’s a simple thing to be an audience member.