By Jerome English
 
High schools are starting back up with the new hybrid plan. From my perspective, it feels very weird. Because of covid-19 we have to do everything very differently than what we are used to. Lunch is very different. We do not sit together at all. We have a single desk in rows, and it looks like we’re taking Regents tests. The classrooms are very small, the desk is 6 feet apart, and very unusual thing is that we have our phones in school.  We haven’t had our phones in school since I was in 9th grade and I’m a senior now.
 
From support teacher Mrs. Agnitti’s perspective, she feels like it was time to come back to school and she seems very happy about the new hybrid system. She says she will miss doing remote learning because of her family and she used to have more time to spend with them and work with her husband. She says the way of teaching is difficult because she has to teach the students in person and students are doing remote learning. She also believes the school is doing a good job with social distancing and sanitation. 
 
From my perspective and Mrs. Agnitti’s perspective, I feel like teachers and students are happy to be back in school; the school makes us feel safe because of the social distancing rules and the school sanitization. I think the new hybrid system is a good idea and I am happy to be back on campus.

By Jamel Brown
 
When tackling the topic of Black History Month, let's first talk about when it was first widely recognized. Black History Month was seen as a national observance in 1976. Black History Month was created in order to recognize important historical figures that led to movements and events to help stop unfair treatment against African Americans. These historical leaders also helped pave the way for many other African American role models. As time advances, the reasons for the celebration of Black History Month will change.
 
Now that the problem of segregation of African Americans is gone, new problems come to light. Problems such as the injustice of the African American victims due to police brutality and systematic racism. Compared to when Black History Month was first created, the problems and events that were celebrated elevates with the constant change in an openness of society. We now recognize and honor the countless amounts of African Americans who have died due to unprovoked police brutality. With the invention of social media came the appearance of new important platforms for everyday African Americans to voice their political opinions.
 
These changes about why Black History Month is celebrated also includes the fact that you no longer have to be a person of immense talent or political power in order for your opinion to be heard and reciprocated. For example, during the time that Black History Month was first being celebrated, people learned about it through current events and experiences that they had, while in today's society we can learn an immense amount of African American history through the shared experiences of people who are like me - in a lot more detail than the curriculum at school teaches us - because they share the same experiences because of the shared race.

By Aaliyah Bell
 
Over the course of a couple weeks temperatures down south have dropped dramatically. Due to the unexpected snow storm, which caused icy roads and traumatic accidents in places such as Texas and Arkansas, millions of Americans are left with no electricity. Not only are citizens left with no electricity but Texas has been issued not to use their water due to parasites being in pipes that have burst and caused the flow of water to be interrupted. Many of these problems from the sudden cold weather can all be related back to one thing; climate change. 
 
Over the course of the years many everyday people have ignored the thought of climate change, especially with the other problems going on in the world. The primary cause of global warming is human activity such as the burning of fossil fuels leading to greenhouse gases entering the atmosphere. The atmosphere warming up led to the Arctic rapidly warming from -110 degrees Celsius to just -10 degrees Celsius, causing a polar vortex. When the polar vortex is interrupted the cold air releases and plunges to south, because of this is the reason plenty of cities down south have seen a record low for the winter that nobody could have prepared them for. My suggestion for helping to control climate change for future generations is to invest in energy efficiency and fewer deforestation where it is not needed. We can only hope that natural occurrences such as hurricanes are not worsened throughout the year. 

By Dyanna Garcia
 
In the state of New York there are a total of 240 universities and colleges. Each college/university has their own policies regarding many different problems. One of the biggest complications on college campus is sexual assault. The sexual assault definition involves crimes where offenders subject victims to unwanted or offensive sexual contact. The most common issues in sexual assault are underreporting, victim-perpetrator relationships and school policies and procedures.

The percent of sexual assaults continues to keep increasing since the year of 2000. This has become more common and unreported as the years progress.

According to Wikipedia “...somewhere between 19 and 27% of college women and 6-8% of college men are sexually assaulted during their time in college.”

All college/universities go about sexual assault differently due to their own policies. Besides the policy, there are requirements that every institution must follow when dealing with reports of sexual assault on their campus. These requirements include taking immediate action to eliminate the harassment, prevent its recurrence, and address its effects.

According to news source Best Colleges “The government requires schools to address sexual violence cases immediately. Victims can take legal action if schools fail to respond.” 

As a student there are a few precautionary measures that can be taken to reduce your risk of attack. These include providing information to your loved ones or friends on where you are, watching your drink, knowing your personal limits, having a backup plan, avoid traveling alone or consider safety escorts, and staying secure in dorm rooms/apartments by locking doors and windows.

Although sexual assault can affect and damage a person’s life tremendously there a few options to help with coping such as counseling services and support groups.
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Multiple organizations exist to provide detailed information about sexual violence and help student who become victims. For example, there’s a hotline that you can contact known as the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE. There also many online resources such as National Sexual Violence Resource Center, National Organization for Victim Assistance, National Resource Center for Domestic Violence, and RAINN Online Chat.

By Boni Hassan
 
There are many things that can motivate you such as family, music, friends, learning new things, being in a team and more. For me, my family and friends motivate me and help me with things and they don’t let me give up when things are getting difficult. I also listen to music for motivation to continue while doing my work; it helps me focus. Some people will also find it helpful and others won’t. People have different things that motivate them. Having people motivate you it’s great because they would not let you give up even though you want to. They give you great advice on things, help you with your help, always there for you and will make sure you are good. They push you to keep going and never give up. 
 
You also give people motivation to keep going because you don’t want them to give up when things are difficult and they don't want you to give up either. We push each other to keep, never give up and to chase our dreams, and what we want to do or become in life. We all motivate each other to keep pushing and chase our dreams.