Pathetic, Anyone?


Articles Dante Alighieri Arthur Dent Jesus Jones Thomas Paine Other Authors Contact Us! Letter to the Editor Dante Alighieri Arthur Dent Jesus Jones Thomas Paine	Pathetic, Anyone? Thomas Paine If our last senior class meeting was a restaurant, what they served was the usual: gentle scolding with a side of congratulations. The administration reminded students that the future is now, and then Senior Class Advisor Peita Ramos and Senior Class President Tiffany Zammit talked about Senior Ball. The latter speaker called the class "pathetic" for failing to put forth the effort to raise money for the all-important dance. The statements made seemed well-intentioned; after all, it's our last prom. What could be more important than that? The answer to that question came the following Friday: Lunch. The advisor and eight students ventured into San Francisco on September thirteenth to check out the Mark Hopkins Hotel as a possible destination for the promenade, each fortunate pupil missing a good deal of school in order to see the prospective destination for themselves. The group was comprised not only of the pupils who normally participate in Leadership activities, but also some individuals who were either new to Leadership like Anna Beylin, or who were not in the class at all, like Veronica Sette. Two of the most instrumental students in prom coordination, Dominic Buerkle and Camille Gurriba, had to miss the trip due to their academic commitment. In no rush to return, the group of nine explorers stopped for lunch, running up a three-digit tab. One might think such a bill should be split nine ways, but the idea may have been a bit too pedestrian for the leaders. Instead, they decided to use class funds to pay for the comestibles- class funds, people, the very money that ought to be covering Senior Ball. Several students have been working on chain gangs at football games, cleaning up after the fans leave, and working Stanford Parking in order to endow the nest egg for the upcoming ball, but somehow the class, collectively, is "pathetic," for failing to raise money. Nobody seems to realize that some of the very students who are leading are also siphoning assets to nourish their appetites. Even the Student Body President Kyle Ekberg "said not a thing," at the table, according to a leadership insider, who then said "I feel kinda bad doing this to my classmates, but then again, I feel worse knowing that students are picking up trash and standing in a parking lot and dedicating their time just to raise money to feed nine people." Not all parties at the table agreed with the payment plan, however. Nicolette DeLouche protested the decision, refusing to eat altogether, and after arguing her point unsuccessfully and failing to rally support from two allies, left the table in a storm. Upon her return, the check had been paid in full - with money belonging to the class of 2003. It was reported that Zammit justified the expense by saying that erstwhile senior classes had done the same. In reality, the expenditures of earlier classes were logged after prom, with surplus money - not months prior to the big dance as leadership scrounges for funds and a locale. Furthermore, two very dedicated students who had spent years collecting money for the class were absent from the luncheon, while those who didn't belong there were content to eat food purchased by you, the students. Digressing a bit - why eight students rather than a modest four or five? It can't take more than half a dozen people to walk around the lobby and check if the disco ball is in working order. And why take the trip on a school day? Prom is an important thing, and its location is something that requires a great deal of consideration, but you damn well know that many of the surveyors were there, more than anything else, to miss school. Sure, missing school is fun - for students, but what about Mrs. Ramos? The woman left classloads of her precious students with a possibly inept substitute teacher and a bunch of busywork while she went out to lunch! Just what does that say about her priorities? It is inherent for pupils to desire to miss school, but when a teacher leaves her students behind for what can best be described as a "day off," one can only wonder what was going on in her mind, or the mind of the administrators who allowed it to happen. Advising a class is a noteworthy thing to do, there is no doubt about it, but when dozens of students are forsaken by their teacher in order for her to take some leadership kids to a nine-person, two-hour, three-digit meal at the expense of their class, the irresponsibility assaults the senses. Subsequently, two of the students present at the lunch have decided to reimburse the class for their lunch. That is definitely a step in the right direction, but the fact that the ordeal had to happen in the first place is shameful. Seniors, you are not pathetic. What is pathetic is that a teacher deserted her students to go out to a lengthy lunch with nine people. What's pathetic is that the luncheon, which excluded important members and included nonmembers, cost upwards of $128 and was charged to the class of 2003. What's pathetic is that only one person chose to stand up for her principles.	Archive Back Issues Why? 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Thomas Paine

If our last senior class meeting was a restaurant, what they served was the usual: gentle scolding with a side of congratulations. The administration reminded students that the future is now, and then Senior Class Advisor Peita Ramos and Senior Class President Tiffany Zammit talked about Senior Ball. The latter speaker called the class "pathetic" for failing to put forth the effort to raise money for the all-important dance. The statements made seemed well-intentioned; after all, it's our last prom. What could be more important than that? The answer to that question came the following Friday: Lunch.

The advisor and eight students ventured into San Francisco on September thirteenth to check out the Mark Hopkins Hotel as a possible destination for the promenade, each fortunate pupil missing a good deal of school in order to see the prospective destination for themselves. The group was comprised not only of the pupils who normally participate in Leadership activities, but also some individuals who were either new to Leadership like Anna Beylin, or who were not in the class at all, like Veronica Sette. Two of the most instrumental students in prom coordination, Dominic Buerkle and Camille Gurriba, had to miss the trip due to their academic commitment. In no rush to return, the group of nine explorers stopped for lunch, running up a three-digit tab. One might think such a bill should be split nine ways, but the idea may have been a bit too pedestrian for the leaders. Instead, they decided to use class funds to pay for the comestibles- class funds, people, the very money that ought to be covering Senior Ball. Several students have been working on chain gangs at football games, cleaning up after the fans leave, and working Stanford Parking in order to endow the nest egg for the upcoming ball, but somehow the class, collectively, is "pathetic," for failing to raise money. Nobody seems to realize that some of the very students who are leading are also siphoning assets to nourish their appetites. Even the Student Body President Kyle Ekberg "said not a thing," at the table, according to a leadership insider, who then said "I feel kinda bad doing this to my classmates, but then again, I feel worse knowing that students are picking up trash and standing in a parking lot and dedicating their time just to raise money to feed nine people."

Not all parties at the table agreed with the payment plan, however. Nicolette DeLouche protested the decision, refusing to eat altogether, and after arguing her point unsuccessfully and failing to rally support from two allies, left the table in a storm. Upon her return, the check had been paid in full - with money belonging to the class of 2003. It was reported that Zammit justified the expense by saying that erstwhile senior classes had done the same. In reality, the expenditures of earlier classes were logged after prom, with surplus money - not months prior to the big dance as leadership scrounges for funds and a locale. Furthermore, two very dedicated students who had spent years collecting money for the class were absent from the luncheon, while those who didn't belong there were content to eat food purchased by you, the students.

Digressing a bit - why eight students rather than a modest four or five? It can't take more than half a dozen people to walk around the lobby and check if the disco ball is in working order. And why take the trip on a school day? Prom is an important thing, and its location is something that requires a great deal of consideration, but you damn well know that many of the surveyors were there, more than anything else, to miss school. Sure, missing school is fun - for students, but what about Mrs. Ramos? The woman left classloads of her precious students with a possibly inept substitute teacher and a bunch of busywork while she went out to lunch! Just what does that say about her priorities? It is inherent for pupils to desire to miss school, but when a teacher leaves her students behind for what can best be described as a "day off," one can only wonder what was going on in her mind, or the mind of the administrators who allowed it to happen. Advising a class is a noteworthy thing to do, there is no doubt about it, but when dozens of students are forsaken by their teacher in order for her to take some leadership kids to a nine-person, two-hour, three-digit meal at the expense of their class, the irresponsibility assaults the senses.

Subsequently, two of the students present at the lunch have decided to reimburse the class for their lunch. That is definitely a step in the right direction, but the fact that the ordeal had to happen in the first place is shameful. Seniors, you are not pathetic. What is pathetic is that a teacher deserted her students to go out to a lengthy lunch with nine people. What's pathetic is that the luncheon, which excluded important members and included nonmembers, cost upwards of $128 and was charged to the class of 2003. What's pathetic is that only one person chose to stand up for her principles.