Our Five-year Plans

What are your plans after high school?

By Lakia Anderson

Staff Writer

What do you plan on doing after high school? It seems to be the question asked by all the students at Crotona Academy High School. After finishing high school, you have to determine where your life is going to go in the near future. It is a very big decision. The moves you make will determine how your life plays out--whether it be a good or bad outcome. Recently Crotona had a speaker come in and talk to students about being “in the game” and “making all the right decisions,” but some of us are still confused.

To get some idea about what some of the students are going to do after graduating high school, I interviewed some of the students. Yuleisi Matos, a junior at Crotona Academy, said that she plans on going to college. She said that it didn’t matter what college, but she wants to go far from the Bronx. “I‘m not ready right now, but maybe by next year I should be,” she said. Also, she explained that she thinks Crotona is doing a great job helping and preparing her for college. Yuleisi plans on getting the money for college from financial aid since she cannot pay for college herself.

I also got the chance to interview another student at Crotona, Johanna Dominguez. “I want to go to college and possibly try to get a part-time job,” she said. She also said that her Plan B would be to maybe try vocational school if college doesn’t work out for her. “I would really like to become a cop,” she said. She hopes to use financial aid to pay for college. The military is a popular place to go after high school, but Johanna said she has no plans on going to the military. Johanna said Crotona is helping her get out of high school, and she doesn’t plan on dropping out. She says that is not an option for her. So far her whole high school experience has kind of helped her prepare for college, she added. She said Crotona has helped her wake up in the morning, set a schedule, and complete homework or projects that are due.

Endaisha Stribling, a senior at Crotona, voiced her plans after high school too. “I’m going down south,” she said, explaining that it’s way cheaper to go to college down there and it’s easier for her to get a driver’s license and establish herself. “I plan to go to college to become a teacher,” she added. She said she plans to work and go to school at the same time to achieve her goal. She also has a Plan B. “If I don’t end up going down south, my plan is to go to Hunter College, but I really want to get out of the city,” she said. She also claims that the school is helping in some ways, and she likes it because they are really helping her to graduate.

In all, I think the majority of the students at Crotona Academy plan to go to college. Many kids seemed to have nothing else to do. Most of the students at Crotona already are working and have jobs. I also observed, based on my interviews, that most of them have a second plan just in case their first plan doesn’t work out. College is also expensive and most of us will be relying on the benefits of financial aid to get through college.

BFFs

Best Friends Forever

By Xylina Ortiz

Staff Writer

Best friends. We all have one. I mean, who doesn’t? That’s the title we search for in high school. The label—aka BFF for best friend forever—actually separates a person from a crowd of students. High school is supposed to be strictly educational, but of course students change it to a fun adventure with friends. Best friends can mean a variety of things. The common meaning is a good, close friendship. Here at Crotona the title “Best Friend” is given to few students. Since people see the meaning so differently, let’s see what Crotona BFFs have to say.

Quaneisha B., Najee T., and Curen S. are a trio of best friends at Crotona. They have known each other since September 2010 and they became best friends almost immediately. “Better half, my twin, my right-left hand, Hold me down, someone you rock with,” they said, giving me the definition of what best friends mean to them. They all agreed the reason they are so close is due to similarities they have—like going to parties, shopping, etc. “Mostly everything,” Curen said, adding that having many similarities kee

ps them together most of the time. “Two girls that understand me, very nice,” Curen said. She explained that one of the things she loves about Quaneisha and Najee is the fact that they have an understanding with each other that many people might not have. This created their three-way bond.

“Singing partner. She gets me. We have the same relationship issues. Curen, my cornball, we are compatible. We can never stop talking, and we can’t stay mad at each other,” Quaneisha said. She said that Curen and Najee live up to her expectations. “(I) like them cause I can talk to them, laugh out loud. They like my backbone. They’re there when you fall,” Najee said. As a group they all agreed that trust is important, and they all trust each other. They wouldn’t choose anyone else to roam around Crotona with; and since their different personalities are different but click, they wouldn’t change each other for the world. “I love them,” they said in unison. The love they feel for each other is powerful, and that’s why the trio of BFFs are together and won’t part.

Another couple of BFFs is Jazzy P. and Saadi H. They have been best friends for almost two years now and are inseparable. “My nigga, my PIC, partner in crime,” Saadi said, sharing what Jazzy means to him. She seems to agree with this. “Someone who won’t criticize me, tell me right from wrong. Someone there for me, (who holds) me down,” Jazzy said about the meaning of BFF to her.

“Someone who’s gonna show me the same respect Ima show them. Someone who’s there at my weakest moments,” Saadi said about what BFF means to him.

But what makes these two choose each other? As they both said, not every one of their friends are best friends to them. They must have a certain attraction that brings them to one another. “She don’t follow no one; she do her own thing,” Saadi said, describing what makes her stand out from the rest. Her attitude and independence are what attracted Saadi the most, he added.

“He understands me. He’s mad funny. That’s my brother,” Jazzy said.

So as you can see, a BFF is not just a friend to them, it’s someone who falls under these criteria and someone who really lives up to the expectations of what a BFF is. What makes a BFF unique and special to them is not only their characterization but also their company. “Go-out, chill, talk,” Saadi and Jazzy said, stating being together and having time to bond is also important to them.

Crotona Has Talent!

By Xylina Ortiz

Staff Writer

Crotona Academy’s students come in different colors, shades of hair, and different personalities, which makes the beauty of our diversity great. Due to our differences we come with amazing talents and originality that we can share and compare with others. Our school is loaded with talent that shines in almost everything we do. We have students who are promising writers, good athletes, dancers, singers, artists etc. With so many unique talents, we enjoy showing off what we can do! Therefore here is a sampling of students who have great talent

of their own.

Naiomi M., an 18-year-old student at Crotona, is an amazing singer and mentor to the people who surround her. She started singing at 16. Singing makes her feel physically, mentally, and emotionally good. Not only does her singing make her feel good, but she has been told that her voice touches many. “When I am mad, sad, or whatever, I sing,” she said, adding that singing has made a big impact in her life. She uses singing to keep her going. Naiomi isn’t your average singer either. She sings contemporary, gospel, and church songs. Since the age of 16, Naiomi involved herself in singing for a church named New Life Outreach International. That is where she takes the stage and sings her heart out.

Before Naiomi exposed her singing talents, “I was nervous but it’s for a good cause,” she said. Naiomi’s determination to sing for the people in church is what motivated her to become the confident singer that she is now. “I feel like singing inspires,” she said, hoping that singing in her church brings inspiration through the lyrics and her voice. Besides the church singing that Naiomi does, she also mentors kids and teens in her church. “Mentoring helps with problems, giving youth the encouragement they need,” she said. Being a mentor means a lot to her. She likes to help people and help to guide them through any situation. This in fact makes her feel even better about making a difference in her community. Naiomi is a talented student and we hope to hear more of her talents soon.

Another student at Crotona Academy also sings as well. Angel Luna, 19, has been singing for the past two years. “It makes me feel good,” he said, adding that singing, as Naiomi said, makes a person feel good and comfortable. Angel, on the other hand, doesn’t sing at church. Instead he joined a producing company called A.L.M., which stands for All Level Music. Angel has been with this company for over three and a half years, but it was only 2 years ago that he decided to let his talent shine. He doesn’t only sing and have his music produced but he also writes his own music and performs on stage. “Nervous” he said--that’s the feeling he and a million others get before performing in the spotlight, but it’s the reason behind it that gives them the courage to proceed. Before he started singing, he expressed his feelings by reciting poetry and rapping, he said.

Singing has made an impact on Angel’s life. “It made me want to be determined in my near future,” he said. Singing makes him more open-minded about his future and what he wants to do in his life, he added. It also impacted his views on people. He feels like somehow singing reflects on the people he is friends with and sings with. He’s very compassionate about singing and who he sings to. He said he not only sings to everyone but to a special someone as well. He believes singing attracts the opposite sex and also is a way to gain fame and attention. Angel’s passion for singing comes with dreams to become an artist.

Singing is just one talent Angel has. Drawing is another. “Born to draw” he said, is something he has been doing since childhood. He stated that he loves to color, sketch, and free draw anything. “I believe that you can express feelings through painting,” he said. Like singing, drawing helps express what he feels. Both of Angel’s talents lead him into becoming a better person and a soon-to-be-star.

Crotona is full of students with hidden talents that are ready to be exposed. This blog will continue to write about Crotona’s talented students. If you have a talent and have not yet been interviewed, contact me at Xylinamiracle@gmail.com. Thanks!

A Piercing Look at Piercings

By Lakia Anderson

Staff Writer

Did you know back in 1500 in most places around the world body piercings were a fashion trend? In Egypt body piercings were an indication of how much money you had. Only the higher class got to wear certain piercings.

When Caesar ruled, Romans would have piercings to show their strength and their patriotism was also mentioned in articles on the Internet.

A study by Rutgers University found that Gauntlet, an international chain of body piercing shops, reported 30,000 or more piercings per year in the U.S. They also found in the study that 63% of college-aged students (18-22) have some sort of body piercing.

Why do people pierce? That’s a question that can be answered in many interesting ways. One of the most popular reasons for body piercings, according to an article by Expert Body Piercing, is the way they look. Many people say it looks cool or it shows off their most beautiful features. Some do it for change

or a special event that has occurred or is occurring. Others may do it to hide their image. Studies also show that people will get piercings due to peer pressure or as a way of rebelling against parents. Most girls with piercings prefer to get their belly, nose, ears, and tongue pierced. Most boys get pretty much everything else done. Researchers found that women accounted for almost three fourths of the people around the world with body piercings, not including earlobes. Ear piercings apparently are popular with both genders. Ear piercings are known to be done on babies as young as 2.

To get teens’ opinions I did a series of interviews with my peers at Crotona Academy High School. Brittany C. a student with a total of three piercings said, “I just like them.” She said she plans to keep most of them. Actually, one of the positive things about piercings in this reporter’s mind is the fact that you can easily get rid of them by simply taking them out. This is unlike tattoos, which are more difficult to get rid of but can be removed.

I also got the chance to interview Leyla another student at Crotona. She said her reasoning for getting her four piercings was her mother. Since she had seen her mother with piercings, she thought they looked cool. She also said, “They express me.” She said she plans on keeping all of them and adding more to her collection.

I also had the privilege of interviewing Annisha H. who has 16 piercings! When asked why she has the piercings and their meaning she said, “ I love body art.” She also said there is a downside to her piercings because she attracts the opposite sex a lot and people ask her a lot of questions.

Brandon Morrison also had something to say about piercings. He has his ears and tongue pierced. “It’s cool for style,” he said. He also said it attracts the opposite sex.

In general according to my data and research, I have seen that piercings can be meaningful to some but just a fashion statement or fad to others. Everyone has a different reason for getting piercings whether it is for pleasure, beauty, or just to look or feel cool.

The Mysteries of Journalism

By Jasleen Villamil

Staff Writer

I’m sure you’ve never thought twice about how a newspaper is made. You scan the first two paragraphs of an article and move on. If you’re the type to finish and even read the small boxes of print on the sides, I applaud you. Fact is many people don’t read it all, and I never thought about the process. But, I shouldn’t put you in that category, right? I used to be the person who thought journalism was boring, until this workshop in February at Baruch College instructed by Katina Paron.

Let’s just say getting to the journalism workshop, wasn’t easy. I first went into the wrong building, where the security guard told Xylina, who is co-editor of The Crotona Review, that the college was closed and that we should go home. He had a flirtatious smirk, and we thought he was playing. We told him we were high school students and that this wasn’t a college class. He laughed and said, “The buildings are still closed; you’re really only high school students?”

I asked him where 55 Lexington Avenue was and I pointed to the paper with the information, which he proceeded to read. Ignoring my question he asked, “So you’re here to worship?” I looked at Xylina and we decided he would be no help to us. We thought we had misunderstood the date and come all that way for nothing. Except the date was on the paper, and so was the address. We weren’t even on the right street, so we tried to find the correct building before we decided to bail.

In fact, Baruch was closed, but the workshop was still on. We were let into the building and almost got lost again looking for the room. Ms. Paron invited us in. There were bagels and orange juice. We were embarrassed that we were late, but she included us immediately and made us feel welcomed.

The group was divided in half, because it was big. We joined the smaller group. She asked about our school’s newspaper. Compared to all the other students and their school newspapers, we felt intimidated. Our school’s newspaper is just a blog right now, and we basically are starting up from scratch, never having done journalism before. Other people were talking about their techniques and how they put together their newspapers, which made me second guess my enthusiasm for writing. And then it was time for the tour of The Ticker, which is Baruch College’s newspaper.

The two people, who led the tour were very enthusiastic about what they did. Basically it looked like a computer lab, and it had a view over the lobby of the building. They were the chief editors of sections of the newspaper. They said they had been up all night to complete their newspapers themselves. They offered us some Hershey kisses, but that didn’t perk us up. Everyone was tired as they explained the processes of how they organized and came up with news ideas. There went our enthusiasm. Listening about technical processes isn’t fun, but this is where I learned how much actual work goes into a newspaper.

Every little article and ad in that newspaper you open is planned. We take it for granted, but depending how big your newspaper is, that is a lot of work. For each section of the newspaper there is an editor. Sections include sports, features, news, and opinions for starters. And depending on when your newspaper is being printed, the editors are in charge in figuring out what goes into them and where. The editors don’t write all the articles themselves; their job is to read and edit the writers’ articles. We learned they have meetings, in deciding how many pages they need their section to be, and then they have really short deadlines in which to fill them.

I find the power they have over picking out the many articles that people send them a thrill. I secretly thought to myself I would want to do that. But it is also a lot of work because they must continuously edit other people’s articles, stay up late to meet deadlines, and they are also reporters, which means they get to meet people and go to events. It depends what is your cup of tea. Not everyone writing for the newspaper were even journalism majors. For example, they said the person in charge of the science and technology section is in Pre-med, and they said he rarely puts any medical articles in his section.

The rest of the workshop was actually a workshop, in which we learned how to write leads. There’s a certain format to newspaper articles if you haven’t noticed, and I had trouble getting them down pat, but after a while I started thinking like a reporter. Everything to me had an alternative view to think about. I realized there is a lot more to news stories than I thought. It made me think more about how I was going to write articles without putting in too much information, invading peoples’ privacy, and what angle was I going to take on the story. We got to see the other kids’ newspapers, and when we looked at the articles in our blog, which were boring, we vowed we would change Crotona Academy’s newspaper so it would not be what it was.

The other kids came from schools much different then ours, and had activities and story topics, such as crowded hallways, which probably would not even be a problem in our school. Next to ours, their problems seemed trivial. They seemed very proper and correct, and at our school, a transfer school, things just don’t flow that way. They have hallway congestion, sports teams, and speak proper and are against drug use and gang violence. The workshop showed us the reality of our two different situations. We just have different stories. It gave me an interesting viewpoint and appreciation for reading the newspaper. Hopefully you will think twice about the person who wrote the article you’ll read in the newspaper next time.

Submit Now!

Welcome to The Crotona Academy Review, a place where students have the power to express themselves and display their talents for the world to see. This blog is created by students who attend Crotona, and is open to anyone who is interested in sharing their work with our readers. We depend on the creativity of our staff and the help of our students to keep this blog updated. The purpose of the Review is not only to show you our amazing work but to also get more students involved. We are looking for creative students who have pictures, poems, drawings, writings, thoughts, ideas, etc. that they can share to make our blog full of diversity. This is a non-judgmental spot. If you feel you would like to submit something, don’t be shy and join in. Be a part of our blog community by commenting below or simply emailing Ms. Becker at msbecker4@gmail.com or me at xylinamiracle@gmail.com Thanks and enjoy! Remember: students are always welcome!
—Xylina M. Ortiz

Saggin' Pants

By Xylina Ortiz

Staff Writer

I bet you have seen the new fashion trend, right? I mean it’s like going around all over New York City especially in school. Everyone’s doing it even the cute guys and popular girls. I know you know about the pants below the waist with boxers exposed. See, that’s the trend most people in New York City and Crotona Academy High School follow. The sagging pants seem to be the coolest fashion trend of our time. Everyone knows that this fashion trend came from jail, but I mean who bothers to listen? Teens don’t mind that it came from jail because I mean everyone’s doing it, even celebrities. So why would they stop? In Crotona, you roam the campus and see nothing but tight clothes and sagging pants. Some students often argue with teachers on campus, saying, “I wear my clothes however I feel like it.” I think we can all conclude that we freely express ourselves with our clothing.

According to Ms. Scott, a Social Studies teacher here at Crotona, dressing like this is just a phase that some teenagers go through. She says she is very understanding of “the impact this may have on some young people.”

Ms. Scott says there are potential dangers in wearing pants below the waist. “This could be a safety hazard. It’s like accidents waiting to happen,” she says. She thinks that pants below the waist can lead to falling or tripping. She also stated, “This is a sanitation and hygiene issue.” During the day, she added, we sweat and our body rejects fluids not because we are dirty but because that’s how our body functions. She says that when your pants are below your waist, your bottom could potentially be exposed to many bacteria and germs that an individual may come in contact with while commuting to work or school. Germs could be spread by sitting on chairs, bus seats, train seats, etc or when using public restrooms, according to Ms. Scott.

Ms. Scott believes that sagging pants may send off “the wrong messages concerning our young people. Young men do not want to give off a negative impression but unfortunately some members of our society take it as a negative impression,” she says. The pants below the waist may be a fashion trend that’s cool but in the professional world, it may be taken as an insult or in a negative way, she says.

Some students agree and some students disagree with Ms. Scott’s theory. Montel Vargas says, “Sagging is more comfortable. It is also today’s style and my style.” He believes this is not a teen phase that he and other young men go through, but it is simply just a style. He understands that teachers do not want to see his pants below the waist, but he claims, “It expresses your style.” Montel admits that he feels this type of style affects his appearance so that people may portray him as a drug dealer or high school dropout, but he said that is not his intention. A style is a style and he feels it shouldn’t be such a big deal. Montel also admits he feels like this style is unattractive to the opposite sex, but it’s the comfort of the sagging that makes him want to keep his pants below the waist.

Montel disagrees with Ms. Scott’s hygiene and sanitation theory. He believes that if you’re clean enough, you wouldn’t be passing germs around. He adds that the germs are already there, so sagging shouldn’t be the blame for germs flowing around. Montel also feels it’s unfair that society focuses on young men with pants below the waist rather then girls showing too much skin.

“But why girls be half naked and it’s all good?” he says. Girls tend to wear short shorts and small clothing that shows way too much skin, so why aren’t people complaining about that, he wonders. He feels that society should be focused on both genders equally because if his style is such a bad idea. then girl’s style should be a bad idea too.

On the other hand, Ashlee Robinson, also a student at Crotona, actually agrees with Ms. Scott’s theory. “Ew, what is that!” she says she thinks when she sees a boy sagging his pants. She feels that sagging reveals too much of what a girl shouldn’t be seeing. But then Ashlee expresses the difference between “okay sagging” and “dirty sagging.”

“Okay sagging is when the pants sag just a little, when you can’t see your whole butt,” Ashlee says. “Now dirty sagging is when your butt is just all out!” The difference sets the bar to Ashlee because she believes the way you sag is the way people judge your appearance. She states too much sagging gives off negative thoughts to society while little sagging can be related to a style trend that is safer. Ashlee agrees that this is today’s fashion, and that negative appearance is not what is intended. Simply, it’s just a style to her as well. She agrees with Ms. Scott that sanitation and hygiene are an issue. She feels that exposing your body to germs is not safe, and wearing your pants below the waist is exposing your body to germs.

Different students at Crotona Academy feel different ways towards the fashion trend of sagging. I encourage all students to express your feelings on this issue here or drop us an email or text and tell us how you feel.
Xylina Ortiz is an editor at The Crotona Review.