Wednesday, March 27, 2013

ACS-The Task of Becoming a Teen

Submitted by Roni Gillenson


The Task of Becoming a Teen by Charlotte Villemoes, LMFT Site Director at Woodside High School

After years of challenging teen years my son has finally emerged again, and much to my delight I am discovering he was hiding a real human being in there, someone who is able to communicate and show some basic interest in other people, including his mom. Now that the sleepless nights are at a distance, it has become a little easier for me to see what caused all the pain and worry. My son was simply busy, busy with tasks every single teen is required to master whether they are aware of it or not, whether they want to or not.

First of all teens need to adjust to all the many physical changes puberty brings. Growth spurts, new curves, breaking voices, a strange face decorated with pimples. A vast majority of adolescents spend hours worrying over their looks, many feel ugly. At the same time raging hormones are putting sex front and center in their lives, adding a whole new dimension in life, among others giving them the task to realize and come to terms with their sexual orientation.

Ready or not, teens also have to separate from their parents. They do this in all sorts of creative ways, experimenting with clothes, body art, politics, drugs, and music, seemingly anything to drive their parents crazy or push them away. As challenging as it is for everybody involved, these are actually steps they need to take in order to prepare for the task of becoming independent individuals once adolescence is over. By pulling away from their parents’ influence, they are trying to decide how they want to live their own lives, what values they want to adopt.

During adolescence, teens need to develop a social network and learn to navigate the social scene without parental oversight. This is the time where they build their first true friendships based on shared interests and values, and also the time where they start learning more about romantic relationships, – a task that often comes with confusion, hurt feelings, and late night heart aches. In the midst of juggling all this, they are also expected to start defining their vocational and educational goals or at least have an answer ready when the well-meaning adults in their lives ask: “So what do you want to do after high school?” An honest answer would be: “I just want to get rid of those damn pimples!”, but instead we expect them to rattle off some college and career choices.

Added to all this are of course the basic tasks of going to school almost eight hours a day, doing homework for at least two, performing miscellaneous after school activities, helping with – or fighting over – chores at home, as well as participating in family activities with at least one ear open. To top it off, research shows that teen brains are undergoing dramatic structural changes, to the point where they deserve wearing a sign saying “closed during remodel”. No wonder they shut down or act out or do a little bit of both.

Based on all this, my advice to fellow parents is to take a deep breath, give your teen a hug, exercise your sense of humor, practice patience and good faith: Chances are your teen will emerge as a human being, just like mine did.

I am sharing this to let you know there is hope, so hang in there.


Adolescent Counseling Services is a community non-profit, which provides vital counseling services on eight secondary campuses at no charge to students and their families. To learn more about our services please visit the ACS website at www.acs-teens.org or call Sabrina Geshay, MFT, Site Director at Gunn (650) 849-7919.  ACS relies on the generosity of community members to continue offering individual, family, and group counseling to over 1,500 individuals annually. 
ACS provides critical interventions and mental health services, building a better future for tomorrow.
 If you are interested in helping to support our efforts, do not hesitate to call to make a donation. 
It goes a long way in helping teenagers find their way!

Adolescent Counseling Services (ACS) Wants You!
Do you care about local teens and families?  Are you interested in making sure accessible mental health services are available to the community?  ACS is currently looking for individuals to serve on our Board of Directors.  For more information, please contact Janet Chaikind, ACS Vice President, at governance@acs-teens.org

FREE Prevention Offerings from ACS
Take advantage of ACS’ FREE Substance Abuse Prevention Workshops offered monthly at the Palo Alto Family YMCA.  For more info, please visit www.acs-teens.org. ACS also offers the Substance Abuse Info Line (SAIL) where trained therapists are ready to answer your questions or provide you with resources related to teens and substance abuse.  Operating Monday-Friday from 5PM to 7PM, you can reach SAIL at (650) 384-3094.



P4P Event on March 20

Submitted by Kathryn Latour


P4P held another successful event on Wednesday, March 20 with the help of Gunn parents, Deanne and Jim Welch, Kim Harisay, and former Gunn student, Iris Latour. Special thanks also go to the following community-minded volunteers who do not currently have children at Gunn: Beth Dillman, Randi Bennion, Logan Deans, Christy Johnson, and Susan Ward. P4P could not have held this event without their generous help!

As part of a raffle to win a free Jamba Juice card, volunteers handed out Hershey’s Kisses to 428 Gunn students who fearlessly braved the almost-inclement weather to bike to school. Perhaps due to the threat of rain, these numbers are low for Gunn High but still represent a huge positive impact on the Arastradero Road congestion and on the environment.

Congratulations go to the following Jamba Juice winners: Freshmen, Geoffrey C., Pablo L., Noah L., Gillian M., Leland Y., David Z.; Sophomores, Minuett B., Tommy F., Becky L., Juan M., Arthur S., Anthony T., Ray Y.; Juniors, Michael A., Rebeccah G., Madison T., William W., Warren Z.; and Seniors, Anita C., Miles G., Jeremy K., and Juan P.

Thursday, March 7, 2013

Lady Titans Basketball Success


Submitted by Miriam Rotman


Lady Titans Have Basketball Success

The Gunn Girls’ Basketball squad had an easy time in their opening round of Northern California playoff action as they defeated visiting Galileo 44-30 in front of an appreciative and enthusiastic Gunn crowd on Wednesday night.

The game marked the end of an era as it was the last ever varsity basketball game in Robert A. Bow Gymnasium as next year a beautiful new gym will open marking a new era of Gunn Basketball. In attendance enjoying the game was Robert A. Bow and his wife. Mr. Bow helped design the gym and was at Gunn from its opening in 1964 until his retirement in 1986.

Gunn was never serious challenged as Nora Shevick started the game with a three pointer and the Lady Titans never trailed. Gunn raced out to an 8-0 lead and then when it was 10-4 late in the first, went on a 15-2 run that saw the Lady Titans take a 25-6 lead late in the first half.

“We made some big three pointers early that helped,” said Stapp after the game. “Galileo was quick and disrupted our offense and we need to step our game for Saturday.”

While Gunn had a significant height advantage, the Lions were fast and caused some uncharacteristic Gunn turnovers. Mistakes they could afford to make against Galileo but will be deadly in Saturday’s game at top seeded Monte Vista in Danville at 7:00 PM.

In the second half Galileo gamely challenged but any hopes of a comeback were dashed late in the third when Olivia Tapia made a three pointer to make the score 36-18.

From there both teams traded baskets as every Lady Titan saw action on the court and as the final buzzer sounded in the final game in Robert A. Bow Gymnasium, the Lady Titans moved on to the NorCal Quarterfinals for the second year in a row and third time in five years and improved their season record to 20-6.

Gunn was led with nine points from both Meghan Mahoney and Shevick with all of Shevick’s points coming on three pointers. Zoe Zwerling added seven with Claire Klausner scoring six along with Tapia’s six as she made two three pointers. Rounding out the scoring was Sarah Klem with five and Camille Steger with two.

CCS Championship Game

The Gunn girls' basketball team made some history by winning its second straight Central Coast Section championship on Saturday at Santa Clara High.

Not only did the top-seeded Titans (19-6) win their second ever section crown, they also accomplished a feat no other public school has ever done (boys or girls) as they won each of their playoff game by more than 20 points -- capped with an easy 47-24 dispatching of No. 6 seed San Benito (15-12).

While the game did not have the emotional release of the previous year's 41-39 CCS title win over Palo Alto, it did have the satisfaction that the Titans are an impressive force that can impose their will on their opponent.

For the past five years, Gunn girls' basketball has been the premier public school program in the CCS and a large measure of that success goes to head coach Sarah Stapp. Under her tutelage, the Titans have earned four trips in the past five years to the CCS finals and the two aforementioned championships.

The trademark of the team has been a tenacious defense that suffocates opponents and, on this day, San Benito looked like it didn't know what hit them as didn't make their first basket of the game until a minute to go in the first half with Gunn leading 22-1.

"We really played strong defense," Stapp said in an understatement. "Everybody played well and contributed."

Everybody would be accurate as Gunn's swarming defense made San Benito look like they were going against seven defenders as many times the Haybalers would shoot the ball or throw a pass in desperation with no hope of it finding its mark.

The Titans forced 34 turnovers keyed by eight steals from senior Claire Klausner, who appears fully healthy after missing a couple of weeks of action due to illness.

In the beginning, the Gunn offense had trouble finding its own rhythm as the Titans were sluggish and only held a 5-1 lead late in the first period. Then lightening struck for the Titans as Zoe Zwerling connected on a 3-pointer that unleashed an offensive onslaught that put the game away

Zwerling's three-pointer started a 17-0 run that saw two 3- pointers by Olivia Tapia sandwiched around one by Nora Shevick as Gunn was in complete control as it built the lead to 22-1 before San Benito finally made a couple of baskets to close the halftime score to 24-5.

Early in the second half, both Klausner and Zwerling got their third foul and had to come to the bench. San Benito finally made a mini run late in the third as it scored eight straight points to cut the score to 33-19, but Karissa Ogawa calmly sank a 3-pointer to give the Titans a 36-19 lead after three.

The fourth period, Gunn's offense couldn't get on track and, with the score 36-22, San Benito tried to make another run. But, on one possession, Emily Redfield came out of nowhere for her fourth block of the game and then on another possession the larceny activities of Klausner continued as she stole the ball clean and went in for an easy layup. Seconds later Klausner caused another turnover that allowed Tapia to go in for another easy layup as Gunn pushed their lead to 40-22 with four minutes remaining.

From this point on it was just a question of whether or not Gunn would be able to win its third CCS playoff game by more than 20 points and Klausner made sure of it as she followed an Isabel Juang basket with a 3-pointer that made it 47-24 with a minute to go.

Klausner led all Gunn scorers with 12 points, followed by Tapia with 11. Scoring all their points in the first half were Shevick with seven and Zwerling with five. Also on the scoring ledger were Meghan Mahoney with four, Ogawa with three, Sarah Longyear and Juang with two apiece and Klem with one.

Gunn is slated to play a CIF Northern California playoff game on Wednesday. The opponent and the location of the game will be determined on Sunday.

"We know what to expect," said Stapp. "Most of the girls on this year's team played last year in NorCal and that experience will help."

The Task of Becoming a Teen

Submitted by Roni Gillenson


The Task of Becoming a Teen by Charlotte Villemoes, LMFT Site Director at Woodside High School

After years of challenging teen years my son has finally emerged again, and much to my delight I am discovering he was hiding a real human being in there, someone who is able to communicate and show some basic interest in other people, including his mom. Now that the sleepless nights are at a distance, it has become a little easier for me to see what caused all the pain and worry. My son was simply busy, busy with tasks every single teen is required to master whether they are aware of it or not, whether they want to or not.

First of all teens need to adjust to all the many physical changes puberty brings. Growth spurts, new curves, breaking voices, a strange face decorated with pimples. A vast majority of adolescents spend hours worrying over their looks, many feel ugly. At the same time raging hormones are putting sex front and center in their lives, adding a whole new dimension in life, among others giving them the task to realize and come to terms with their sexual orientation.

Ready or not, teens also have to separate from their parents. They do this in all sorts of creative ways, experimenting with clothes, body art, politics, drugs, and music, seemingly anything to drive their parents crazy or push them away. As challenging as it is for everybody involved, these are actually steps they need to take in order to prepare for the task of becoming independent individuals once adolescence is over. By pulling away from their parents’ influence, they are trying to decide how they want to live their own lives, what values they want to adopt.

During adolescence, teens need to develop a social network and learn to navigate the social scene without parental oversight. This is the time where they build their first true friendships based on shared interests and values, and also the time where they start learning more about romantic relationships, – a task that often comes with confusion, hurt feelings, and late night heart aches. In the midst of juggling all this, they are also expected to start defining their vocational and educational goals or at least have an answer ready when the well-meaning adults in their lives ask: “So what do you want to do after high school?” An honest answer would be: “I just want to get rid of those damn pimples!”, but instead we expect them to rattle off some college and career choices.

Added to all this are of course the basic tasks of going to school almost eight hours a day, doing homework for at least two, performing miscellaneous after school activities, helping with – or fighting over – chores at home, as well as participating in family activities with at least one ear open. To top it off, research shows that teen brains are undergoing dramatic structural changes, to the point where they deserve wearing a sign saying “closed during remodel”. No wonder they shut down or act out or do a little bit of both.

Based on all this, my advice to fellow parents is to take a deep breath, give your teen a hug, exercise your sense of humor, practice patience and good faith: Chances are your teen will emerge as a human being, just like mine did.

I am sharing this to let you know there is hope, so hang in there.


Adolescent Counseling Services is a community non-profit, which provides vital counseling services on eight secondary campuses at no charge to students and their families. To learn more about our services please visit the ACS website at www.acs-teens.org or call Sabrina Geshay, MFT, Site Director at Gunn (650) 849-7919.  ACS relies on the generosity of community members to continue offering individual, family, and group counseling to over 1,500 individuals annually. 
ACS provides critical interventions and mental health services, building a better future for tomorrow.
 If you are interested in helping to support our efforts, do not hesitate to call to make a donation. 
It goes a long way in helping teenagers find their way!

Adolescent Counseling Services (ACS) Wants You!
Do you care about local teens and families?  Are you interested in making sure accessible mental health services are available to the community?  ACS is currently looking for individuals to serve on our Board of Directors.  For more information, please contact Janet Chaikind, ACS Vice President, at governance@acs-teens.org

FREE Prevention Offerings from ACS
Take advantage of ACS’ FREE Substance Abuse Prevention Workshops offered monthly at the Palo Alto Family YMCA.  For more info, please visit www.acs-teens.org. ACS also offers the Substance Abuse Info Line (SAIL) where trained therapists are ready to answer your questions or provide you with resources related to teens and substance abuse.  Operating Monday-Friday from 5PM to 7PM, you can reach SAIL at (650) 384-3094.

PACO Auditions for 2013-2014


Submitted by Palo Alto Chamber Orchestra



We are one of the few musical organizations in the United States that specializes in chamber  orchestra and chamber music training. Unlike most symphonic youth groups, the size of PACO's orchestras is closely regulated, with the average number of members being only around 24 students. Our five-orchestra training program is strictly for string players grades 3 through 12.  Please click here to learn about the requirements and to sign up for an audition.
 

Gunn@Your Service Update


Submitted by Lauren Janov
Meet Gunn @ Your Service’s 2013 Social Entrepreneurs!

Congratulations to eleven inspiring Gunn students who, with over 120 others on campus, are turning innovative ideas into extraordinary projects to make our world – near and far -- a better place:

Freshmen

Grace Park will use her Gunn@Your Service micro-grant to promote her Make Happy Birthdays project which encourages students celebrating birthdays to donate to UNICEF’s hunger campaign that helps some of the billion people who go to bed hungry.  She will also raise awareness about their plight. [Hunger-International]

Eleanor Su will use her Gunn Grant to buy bake sale ingredients and give the proceeds to Free the Children which is building a school in Sierra Leone and providing epilepsy treatment. [Education/Health-Sierra Leone]

Sophomores

Laurence Chen will use his Gunn@Your Service micro-grant to buy parts needed to repair 30 bicycles that, once fixed, he will donate to Bay Area organizations serving children without them. [Sports/Health-Bay Area]

Jack Jaffe’s Gunn Grant will continue the efforts of his not-for-profit Recycled Golf Gear by Jack which is collecting used golf clubs for those who cannot afford the sport locally and in Brazil. [Sports/Health-Bay Area and Brazil]

Maya Ram and Deeksha Kumar will use their Gunn micro-grant to ship the school supplies they are collecting to BG Foundation which aids children of India’s migrant workers and to raise awareness about the challenges these children face. [Education-India]

Rachel Wu will use a Gunn Grant to promote her Bay Area Youth in Computer Science project. Gunn BAYCS student volunteers will create their own computer science curriculum and teach it to Silicon Valley’s underprivileged children. [Education-Bay Area]

Juniors

Neel Guha will use his Gunn Grant to purchase math manipulatives and games for his not-for-profit Buddies4Math.  Now in its third year, Buddies4Math student volunteers teach math at Mountain View’s Castro Elementary School. www.buddies4math.blogspot.com [Education-Mountain View]

Jayshree Sarathy’s Gunn@Your Service grant will buy supplies, flyers and a banner for her Handfuls of Hope charity which uses henna art to fundraise for Asha for Education, an organization which builds and supplies schools in India.  She also plans to raise awareness about the needs of children around the world. [Education-India] 

Jaewon Yoon’s Gunn Grant will buy keyboards for low-income music students participating in Gunn Music @ Costano’s program taught by Gunn students in East Palo Alto. This is the third year a Gunn Grant has been awarded to this project. [Education-East Palo Alto]

Senior

Tatiana Grossman’s micro-grant will help defray the cost of shipping thousands of children’s books that will be turned into libraries in Sub-Saharan Africa’s primary schools, work she does through her non-profit Spread the Words. This is the third year Tatiana has received a Gunn Grant for this project. www.SpreadtheWords.us[Education-Africa]

Gunn @ Your Service is exceptionally proud to support these outstanding projects!  


Gunn High School Social Entrepreneurs Get Awards


Submitted by Diane Downend

Gunn High School Social Entrepreneurs Awarded two $20,000 Westly Foundation
Grants

Former California State Controller, Steve Westly and his wife, Anita Yu, operate The
Westly Foundation whose mission is to invest in youth as an avenue for success in the
future. In 2012 they announced the Westly Prize to be awarded to young innovators in
California with creative solutions to community problems. To recognize and encourage
social entrepreneurship among youth, two of the four $20,000 prizes were committed
to current high school students. Both of these awards came to students at Gunn High
School.

Founded in July 2012, Club Academia provides supplemental instruction to students who
are struggling with a particular concept and are looking for further explanation. Starting
with only four students uploading videos to a YouTube account, Club Academia has
expanded to include seventeen video makers and over 300 videos on their website, http:/
/clubacademia.org/ With the help of the $20,000 Westly Prize, Club Academia plans to
acquire additional equipment, enabling engagement by more volunteers in the expansion
of its video base.

Inspired by the words of Nelson Mandela, “Education is the most powerful weapon we
can use to change the world,” senior Tatiana Grossman founded Spread the Words, an
organization committed to global literacy. With its Westly Prize of $20,000, Spread the
Words can take next steps in its commitment to cost effectively deliver digital textbooks
to third world classrooms that lack computers and, often, reliable electricity. Read more
at http://spreadthewords.us

Palo Alto Chamber Orchestra Concert: Mediterranean Journey



Palo Alto Chamber Orchestra Concert: Mediterranean Journey
Saturday, March 9, 2013, Cubberley Theatre, 8:00pm, 4000 Middlefield Road, Palo
           
Benjamin Simon, conductor, Kaila Flexer, violin soloist
Program: Mendelssohn: Sinfonia No. 2 in D Major, Flexer: As-Yet-Untitled Suite, Dohnányi: Serenade for String Orchestra, Op. 10

One of the Bay Area’s most interesting and innovative musicians, violinist Kaila Flexer brings a suite of her Balkan-flavored compositions to our PACO stage, plus her own great back-up band of oud, saz, and darbuka.  Sandwiching our exotic voyage will be pair of classical works for string orchestra: a brilliant symphony by the 11-year old Felix Mendelssohn and a virtuoso arrangement of Ernst von Dohnányi’s folk-inspired Trio Serenade.
 
Information about PACO can be fuond at www.pacomusic.org