In this Issue
1. From the Principal's Desk
2. CTE Summer Academy
3. Calendar Reminder: Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday
4. Technology Fair at Chantilly HS
5. Recognitions
6. Chantilly Pyramid Parent Night
7. Recent Student Successes
1. From the Principal's Desk
Dear Members of the Chantilly Community:
I hope you had a great week. I know I’ve written previously about the potential impact that social media has on young people and adults. I read the following article abstract lately about the topic and it hit home. As principal, I try (but don’t always succeed) to take a diagnostic view when confronting problems, but doing so gets challenging at times. When confronted with multiple stimuli, it can be very difficult to stay focused and rational. The author makes a compelling case for the importance of mitigating the impact of social media, slowing down, and calming one’s mind in order to stay connected with their “better self.” I hope you find it helpful.
Scott Poole
Ezra Klein on Twitter, Quaker Meetings, and Wikipedia
In this New York Times article, Ezra Klein doubts that social media has lived up to the “hopeful imaginings” of its early days. “Is the world more democratic?” he asks. “Is G.D.P. growth higher? Is innovation faster? Do we seem wiser? Do we seem kinder? Are we happier? Shouldn’t something, anything, have gotten noticeably better in the short decades since these services fought their way into our lives?”
Absolutely not, he says, and the reason is that “the cost of so much connection and information has been the deterioration of our capacity for attention and reflection.” Attention is a collective resource, the ability to focus on society’s most pressing problems. Like other collective resources – fresh air, clean water – it can be polluted or depleted.
Everyone is vying for our attention, says Klein: advertisers, politicians, news outlets, social media feeds. “The competition is fierce, and it has led to more sensationalism, more outrageous or infuriating content, more algorithmic tricks, more of anything that might give a brand or a platform or a politician an edge, even as it leaves us harried, irritable, and distracted.” Studies show that negative information gets a stronger emotional response than positive information; that’s what captures our attention and drives online traffic.
Twitter embodies this dynamic, making it “easy to discuss hard topics poorly,” says Klein. “Twitter forces nuanced thoughts down to bumper-sticker bluntness. The chaotic, always moving newsfeed leaves little time for reflection on whatever has just been read. The algorithm’s obsession with likes and retweets means users mainly see (and produce) speech that flatters their community or demonizes those they already loathe. The quote tweet function encourages mockery rather than conversation.”
It’s true that Twitter has been key to putting evidence of longstanding issues in people’s faces, playing a key role in changing the conversation about racism and sexual harassment. “And it has also, of course, given new succor and life to the racist right,” says Klein. “Put simply, Twitter’s value is how easy it makes it to talk. Its cost is how hard it makes it to listen.”
ChatGPT and artificial intelligence programs like it will only make this worse, he believes. “They will be deployed to produce whatever makes us most likely to click. But these systems do not and cannot know what they are producing. The cost of creating and optimizing content that grabs our attention is plummeting, but the cost of producing valuable and truthful work isn’t. These are technologies that lend themselves to cacophony, not community.”
Quakers have an approach that we need to consider, says Klein: silence. In a typical meeting, Quakers sit quietly, sometimes for more than an hour, until someone is moved to say something relevant and important. The same approach is used to make decisions. “I find this powerful in part because I see it in myself,” he says. “I know how I respond in the heat of an argument, when my whole being is tensed to react. And I know how I process hard questions or difficult emotions after quiet reflection, when there is time for my spirit to settle. I know which is my better self.”
Obviously we can’t run a democracy like a Quaker meeting, says Klein, “but there is wisdom here worth mulling.” We don’t make our best decisions when our minds are “active and fretful” – pretty much a description of the brain on Twitter, firing off declarative statements and watching expectantly for likes and retweets.
One hopeful sign, concludes Klein, is that major social media platforms seem to be in decline. Perhaps, he says, “the social media web is reaching its terminal point.” What are possible alternatives? He describes Taiwan’s PTT Bulletin Board, a widely used platform that knits together “civil society – the layer of associations and organizations between government and the market.” And he points to Wikipedia, one of the most-visited sites on the Web. “It is a commons but one that is governed so we may use it rather than so that it may use us,” he says. “It gives so much more than it takes. It thrives, quietly and gently, as a reminder that a very different Internet, governed in a very different way, intended for a very different purpose, is possible.”
“The Great Delusion Behind Twitter” by Ezra Klein in The New York Times, December 11, 2022
2. CTE Summer Academy
The Career and Technical Education (CTE) office is planning an engaging summer enrichment program for students! The CTE Summer Academy is for current 7th to 11th grade students. Click here for more information.
3. Calendar Reminder: Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday
Schools and offices will be closed on Monday, January 16, for the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday. Learn more about Martin Luther King Jr.
Calendar Reminder: Quarter End
As a reminder, Wednesday, January 25, is the last day of the quarter and a two-hour early release for students. Also, schools are closed for students on Thursday, January 26, for a staff development day and Friday, January 27, for a teacher workday. See the complete 2022-23 School Year Calendar.
4. Technology Fair at Chantilly HS
Chantilly High School Chapter of the Technology Student Association (TSA) is holding a Technology Fair this Saturday (1/14) in the cafeteria from 11am -2pm to raise money for the American Cancer Society. Entrance is $5 cash at the door and the TSA students are hosting lots of activities for middle school and elementary age students to learn about technology and to just have fun. There will also be food for sale. This is a fun opportunity to bring small children also.
5. Recognitions
Gymnastics competed at Fairfax vs. WF/CV/MAD, highest team score of the season, 2nd place overall
- Individual placements on every event
- Vault: Marissa Prem 3rd place
- Bars: Meghan Henderson 6th place
- Beam: Kendall Viar 4th place
- Floor: Adison Zampiello 4th place
- All Around: Marissa Prem 5th place
Wrestling travelled to South Lakes for a tri-meet with Oakton:
Varsity won 57-20 over Oakton
Varsity won 64- 17 over South Lakes
JV won 58-19 over Oakton
Wrestling hosted the Joe Verciglio Tournament last Saturday. Chantilly finished 9th out of 20 teams in the tournament.
Zeke Keel finished 2nd
Winston Hively finished 3rd
Carter Shin finished 4th
Adonis Iparraguirre finished 4th
Evan Ross finished 6th
The boys & girls track & field teams competed last Saturday, against Westfield, Oakton, Madison and George C. Marshall at Westfield HS. The girls team finished in 5th place with a score of 48 points. The boys team finished in 1st place with a score of 150 points.
Top 6 Performances Included:
Sammy Emigh - 3rd Place - 55m Hurdles
Girls 4x200m Relay - 1ST PLACE
Angelina Xu - 5th Place - 1600m Run
Apria Smith - 1ST PLACE - REGION QUAL - 300m Dash
Kaitlyn Purvis - 2nd Place - 300m Dash
Ieza Parkhomenko - 3rd Place - 300m Dash
Anastasia Hayes - 4th Place - 3200m Run
Helen Nowicki - 6th Place - 3200m Run
Sid Tanjore - 1ST PLACE - 55m Hurdles
Sid Tanjore - 2nd Place - Triple Jump
Ian Fisher - 4th Place - 55m Hurdles
Connor Gildenhorn - 1ST PLACE - 55m Dash
Connor Gildenhorn - 4th Place - 300m Dash
Boys 4x200m Relay - 1ST PLACE - STATE QUAL
Boys 4X400m Relay – 1ST PLACE
Raymond Creeks - 1ST PLACE - 1600m Run
Raymond Creeks - 1ST PLACE - 1000m Run
Sebastian Nowicki - 3rd Place - 1600m Run
Sebastian Nowicki - 3rd Place - 1000m Run
Luke Barlow - 4th Place - 1600m Run
Luke Barlow - 4th Place - 1000m Run
Camden Kantaparn - 3rd Place - 500m Dash
Charan Narra - 1ST PLACE - REGION QUAL - 300m Dash
Brett Blitzer - 2nd Place - 300m Dash
Herwen Xu - 5th Place - 300m Dash
Ethan Bolivar-Palmer - 6th Place - 300m Dash
Tristan Thurneysen - 1ST PLACE - REGION QUAL - 3200m Run
Brian Creeks - 3rd Place - 3200m Run
Jack Morgan - 4th Place - 3200m Run
Andrew Woessner - 3rd Place - Shot Put
Saran Muthuraman - 6th Place - Shot Put
Mikael Kefale - 6th Place - Triple Jump
The It’s Academic Scholastic Bowl team tied for third in the District tournament on Saturday January 7.
On behalf of our Chantilly Academy Air Force Junior ROTC Corps of Cadets, we are proud to officially announce that Cadet Ryan Kim (Chantilly High School) has received the Air Force Junior ROTC J-100 Character-in-Leadership Scholarship. This scholarship is limited to 100 Air Force Junior ROTC cadets (there are 125,000 cadets worldwide) and includes a “full ride” to any college or university with an Air Force ROTC program and allows recipients to study any major they choose. This was a highly competitive process and we are delighted to share this news!
 Cadet Kim and his family
6. Chantilly Pyramid Parent Night
7. Recent Student Successes
This is the next installment for the school year of what has become a weekly segment aimed at recognizing students for demonstrating recent improvement or achievement in academics, behavior or citizenship. At the end of each recognition, you will see the name of the nominating teacher or staff member. On a rotating basis, departments will nominate students. I meet with recognized students each week to congratulate them in person.
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Abigail Cribby continues to grow as a leader in class who has taken on several special projects this year. They have shown a great ability to lead a team in a variety of tasks across the Tech curriculum and excellent problem-solving skills. Mr. Andy Shaw
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Lake Ervin has truly stepped up as a leader in our theatre department this year and has been a huge help behind the scenes. They are always asking how they can be of assistance, taking leadership positions within our costume department and designing for our upcoming production, 'Imagine If.' We are very proud of Lake and cannot wait to see what the new year holds in store for them! Ms. Shannon Spicer
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Bethany Eyob is a consistently hard worker who is always responsible and eager to improve. On her latest playing test, she showed tremendous growth that is the direct result of her dedication to practice and asking good questions to further her studies. Mr. Doug Maloney
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Daphne Kupchella is a leader in her section. She has a great positive attitude. She is eager to help and learn as much as she can. Mr. Evan Ayars
- The brothers Read, Spencer and William Read, are both incredible musicians who have not only dedicated themselves to their musical craft, but constantly go out of their way to better the jazz program at Chantilly as a whole. Over winter break, they hosted a jam session bringing 23 students together from three different area schools with the goal of making improvisation more accessible in a supportive environment. Mr. Christopher Riechers
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