Interview with Nye' Asia
By Alex White
Ny’Asia,
a high school senior at the School of the Arts, sits down at the opposite end
from me at a small, circular table in a pale yellow room. She exudes a sense of
confidence with her every move, sitting down firmly with a straight-backed
posture and smiling wide as I greet her and thank her for the interview. She
leans back slightly and pushes her legs together, her bold orange shirt draped
loosely over her form-fitting black dance uniform. “Go ahead.”
“How
prepared do you feel for college?” As soon as the words leave my lips, she
laughs, but there’s a noticeable shakiness in her laughter. Her eyes dart
around the room, looking at the college pennants that cover the walls before
settling on a packet labeled “College Application Wrap-Up” nestled up against
the fake flower in the cheap vase between us.
“That
is quite the question. On an educational level, I’m nervous because I know it’s
going to be a completely different ball game, but being a senior, I’ve been in
everything, so I haven’t slacked, but I’ve kind of slacked, so I’m
hoping that I can pull myself back together in September to not slack. But
senioritis is quite a thing.”
One
deep breath and she’s found her confidence again, and she looks me straight in
the eye. “On a mental and emotional level, I feel like I’m ready. I’m scared,
but at the same time, from being a senior, from being here for so long, I’m
starting to see myself change in the things that I want, the things that I find
interesting, amongst my friends, amongst kids who are younger than me… It
doesn’t appeal to me anymore. It’s time for a much more mature setting for me.
I know what I want to do, it’s just a matter of doing it.”
It’s
clear from the way she talks—plainly, clearly, and
boldly—that she truly feels ready. Something she’s said
stands out to me, though. “You mention feeling nervous or underprepared on an
educational level. What could make you feel better prepared for college,
educationally?”
“I
don’t know,” she says, looking contemplatively into the mid-distance. “I feel
like educationally, part of it is my fault because I took on too much. It’s
like, ‘oh man, I have this to do, oh man, I’ve got that to do.’ But there’s a
program called HEOP, all these educational opportunity programs, so I’m hoping
to join that to get back into it, know what they’re expecting, and know how to
kick off.”
The
Arthur O. Eve Higher Education Opportunity Program that Ny’Asia is referencing
is difficult, to put it lightly. It requires a combination of economic need and
an academic history that would both disqualify the applicant from normal
admissions but still demonstrate the ability to successfully complete an
undergraduate degree. Even when applicants are accepted, their grades are
closely monitored to determine whether they are eligible to remain in the
program. It’s an ambitious goal for an ambitious person. As she speaks, I think
of all of the students who talk about how excited they are for college, with no
concept of what college truly means.
“What would happen if
college students came to School of the Arts on a consistent basis—say, once a year—to talk
to students about college applications and the student experience?”
It’s subtle, but her
face lights up. “Oh my god, I think that would be so helpful because, while
most of us love our counselor to death—at least, I love mine—times have changed. It’s been a long time
since our counselors have been at college, so she can only go off of either
what she knows or what’s given to her. To hear it from college students who are
actually going through it, I feel like I take heed to it more. The younger
student is most likely going to listen to the older student because, hey,
you’re actually doing it and not some silly adult. Okay, so you’re a big dog,
you’re actually going through it, so I would most likely listen to that.”
I try to continue the
interview without dwelling too much on the fact that I am rapidly approaching
the end of my stint as a big dog and entering the domain of the silly adults. I
almost succeed. “So would you rather the visits be from a college student or an
admissions officer?”
Her response was as
expected as it was insightful. “College students, because admissions counselors
sometimes come off too strong because they’re trying to get your money and get you to go their
college. If I hear that someone’s coming to SOTA, I tell them, ‘oh, it’s a
great school, but occasionally this happens or this is like this’—I want
someone to be up front with me so I know what I’m getting. It’s like getting a
plate of food, don’t tell me it’s spaghetti if it’s really tuna salad.” She
giggles slightly at her own metaphor, and I giggle slightly because it reminds
me of how hungry I am. “Tell me it’s tuna salad and I’ll choose that it’s what
I want to do. So admissions counselors come off too strong, but if it’s about
the economic part of it or the logistics, I’d rather hear from them because the
average college student probably doesn’t know.”
“What do
you think is the next step to help get students better ready to go through the
applications process and college life?”
“Just
stay honest, just a little bit more. Maybe a couple more meetings more often to
make sure that we’re all at the same pace, quote unquote, since some of us are
smarter than others or have different priorities. So stay on top of us a little
bit more, but also really look into bringing other voices in to be that wake-up
call to us. We’re all going through what we’re going through—home life, trying
to get into our favorite college, trying to figure out what we want to do, trying
to still pass this class, be in this play, play this sport, because it’s our
last opportunity. We get lost. I’m tired. But other than that they’ve been
doing so far so good, at least with me.”
She
laughs as she says her last sentence, and as I thank her for the interview and
watch her go through the door, which is covered in the last remnants of
clay-covered paint, it lingers in my memory. Senior students at School of the
Arts are facing intense pressure to succeed, and with each piece of mail comes
the potential for a soaring victory or a crushing defeat. They are inheriting
an economy where undergraduate degrees are more common and less valuable than
ever before in American history, even as the price of an education continues to
soar. But for students like Ny’Asia, it’s so far, so good.
This interview has been
edited for clarity and length.
Interview
with Anessa
by Helena
On the cold day of Wednesday, March 14th, 2018 at approximately
12:20pm, I walked into the hallway with Anessa following in suit, clad in her
usual cute outfits with her kid sized shoes. She may wear kids sizes but the
girl has pretty good shoe game. She walked to the windows leaning slightly to
the right, her phone held between her palms. She smiled at me, as usual. Before
I could get into the questions, she laughs slightly asking if the questions
were hard. I assured her they weren't. She nodded slightly as a silent okay,
and a gesture for me to continue. I asked the question speaking as clearly as I
could. “What did you do when you found out you got accepted into SOTA?” She
processed the question for a second before smiling, obviously remembering a
joyous time in her life. She answers with a smile on her face. “Um, Well, My
mom over exaggerated, you know, she started crying. So then I started crying,
she picked me up and we just started dancing.” I smile and laugh a bit,
praising about how cute she and her mom’s relationship is. I continue to the
next question, looking back at my paper scanning the words before looking up
and asking her, “How would you have acted if you didn't get accepted?” She
instantly cringes not wanting to imagine it. She awkwardly laughs then pauses
for a moment to think about her response, she sounds a bit unsure but states
that “I would be mad hurt but um yeah, I’d go to an another school.” She ends
with a simple shrug and waits for me to continue. I laugh at her answer.
I ask the third question with ease, “How do you know you would have acted
that way, is there something about your personality that makes you think you
would act that way?” She moves her lips to the side and looks up pondering her
answer. She simply states, “Um I mean, I would be sad or whatever but I am a
very optimistic person,so I would look on the bright side of things, I don’t
know I would just find a way to look at it better” She laughs a bit before
asking for the next question. “What would have happened, like what would be
different if you went to a different school?” is the next question. She
instantly responds “Ew” She laughs but continues with “I’d probably be like a
slacker, I’d feel like.” She pauses a moment and looks up thinking about it and
continues with “Ah, no. I just feel like I wouldn't been as happy as I am, here
because I feel like when I’m here I can express myself”. I nod in a slight
agreement and smiling while I ask the next question, “What do you think of the
fact that you are graduating soon” Her eyes instantly light up, just like most
seniors eyes would when you talk about graduation. She tells me “I feel excited
but I also feel like I need to savor the moments, you know I really can’t wait
for graduation but I also can wait because I’m never gonna be able to come
back”. We exchange a few words about how happy we are to be graduating. She
asks what the final question is. I put the paper on the window sill gently
before asking “What are you going to do
after graduate from school?” She laughs and leans further into the window sill
before giving her answer. “Um I’m gonna go to college, become a nurse and marry
a doctor.” She laughs moving her hand back in forth and replying, “Just
kidding, Seriously though, I’m gonna marry someone I love and have a happy
family, hopefully.” She ends with a content smile spread across her face. I end
the interview thanking her quietly and we walk back into the classroom. The
interview is complete with Anessa and I can draw the conclusion that she is a
pretty bright girl; she loves being at SOTA but is also pretty ecstatic to be
graduating soon. She has what she wants to do and seems like she is excited to
pursue what she wants to do. Overall you can tell that she is a very proud SOTA
student and wouldn't change anything.
*****************************************************************************
Interview with Eileen
by Deja
On a cold yet bright afternoon in March, Eileen and I got together in Journalism. We sat,
asking each other questions about our futures, current lives, and other miscellaneous things. She
sat across from me with her legs crossed and a small smile on her face. Every morning I see
Eileen in the halls but I’ve had never had a conversation with her. I was able to talk with her for
a short while yet I was able to get to know her a bit.
As seniors we are both getting ready for the biggest parts of our lives and I was able to
see what that part of Eileen’s life might look like. I started out our conversation by asking her
where she was from, and if she had grown up in Rochester, New York. She smiled and with a
small laugh she said,”Yes, I’ve lived here my entire life. I grew up here.” After asking this I then
asked my next question, “As a senior do you feel there are certain pressures placed on you from
your family members?” She laughed and smiled again before giving her answer. Like every
other senior she said she did feel as if there are certain pressures placed on her by her family
members. She felt as if she had to get big scholarships, get into a great college, and just overall
be a successful person.
Growing up in today’s world politics play a huge role in the younger generation. People
are getting more involved with their community and fighting back for what they believe is right.
The 2016 election is something that sparked a whole other level of controversy so of course I had
to ask about it.
“How do you think the 2016 election has changed America?” I was genuinely curious as
to what she would say. Whenever I asked people something along the lines of this question they
would proceed to just insult President Trump. Eileen, on the other hand, answered respectfully
with, “I feel as though it has made America more hostile and divided.”
After asking her what her plans after high school she gave the typical answer of going to
college, getting a good job, and traveling. Following her saying that she wanted to travel after
high school I asked, “If you could travel anywhere in the world where would you go and why?”
She thought for a few moments before saying that she would love to go to Australia so she could
see the Great Barrier Reef. Last but not least I asked what she thought her high school experience
would be like. She laughed for a few moments before saying that she thought it would be more
artsy and like High School Musical “because we’re school of the arts”.
All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know Eileen a little bit, and am glad that I had
the chance to talk to her about her future.
******************************************************************************
Interview with Sara
by Michael
Z.
Wednesday during class
around noon, the classroom was dark with the lights off and snow was falling
outside. With other students going about their own interviews, I interviewed
Sara. With this being the first time I met Sara I was nervous while sitting in
a far corner of the room conducting the interview. It wasn’t long but good
information was shared.
I asked very simple
questions, as I had no prior information about Sara. So the first question I
asked was regarding what motivates her, what keeps her going daily around this
time in her life. She took a moment to pause and think, looking at her computer
screen, the pause continued, finally a hesitation and her response was “ I
guess you could say for motivation, being the first in my family to graduate
High School”, I congratulated her on the achievement that she seemed so happy
about. I continued on, asking Sara that if she could travel anywhere in the
world where she would go. Her response was almost immediate, and slightly more
energetic than before. She replied “Paris, France.” After asking why again, she
responded quite quickly and with energy stating how she would love to see the
Eiffel Tower, and how she would like to try the food. The questions switched
back to a school related subject. I asked what her dreams were for after high
school. Sara then expressed her interest in pursuing further education either
at SUNY Delhi or MCC. I wasn’t very thorough and forgot to ask more on the
subject, like what would she like to study. One more important question asked
was what from your childhood has affected you the most in life now. With
confidence Sara responded about the morals her parents have helped her grow
into ever since she a was a young child growing up.
Interview with Tevanna
by Quamae
March eleventh, eleven o’clock, the room filled with the noise of
others conducting interviews. I sat down with Tevanna, who was wearing sports
wear, in complete contrast to my pretentious interviewer getup. She was eager
to be interviewed, seeing as this was one of the few moments we get to
interact. I started with her childhood, asking her of fondest memory. She took
a long pause, remembering so she physically leaned backward. She finally
recoiled with a heartfelt answer, “Cobb’s Hill pond, running around with my old
great dane, getting ice cream from the near trucks”, she smiled and I continued
to ask if her goals now aligned with her goals in her early years. It is said
that at six years of age it is know what a person will want to do with their
life. She paused, and answered with a confident no, “I wanted what every six
year old wanted, to be a singer, actress, but once I got accepted to school of
the arts, I started acting and realized it wasn't for me. It changed
completely, I think with age I developed stage fright”, this is where the
interview became a discussion, I was no longer simply asking questions for the
sake of asking, the Cacophony of noise in the room settled and it was me and
Tevanna having a real conversation, we talked about the current movements
School of the Arts has participated in, and the inclusivity of the arts
culture. “I like it, every one encourages it”. In terms of how the arts culture
and SOTA has shaped her personal goals, as I asked the question her posture
straightened and she began to smirk as she had an answer primed and ready.
She felt that the arts culture had, driven her further from the arts,
“not in a bad way”. “This school helped me find what it is I want to do”. She
continued to talk about how inclusive people at SOTA are, and how, “Sports
helped [her] recognize the racial, age, and gender divisions in other schools,
unlike ours, It's a nice way to prepare for the future”.
I asked what she had a passion for, she immediately had an answer,
“Computer science”, not often talking outside of Journalism I expected
something regarding sports, hence the reference to the clothes she was wearing,
however she had fallen in love with Programming, since taking AP Computer
Science. Not wearing glasses, it was easy to see her pupils dilate, and I could
tell that she was truly captivated. She loved it because, “There is something
new, because it's totally different”, she had not taken an AP class until
senior year, she talked about being interested in math and understanding, along
with computers, so this was a “last ditch effort” to learn something she had
been interested in for a long time. “The feeling of completing a program is
like no other, because it is so difficult.”, this is something I can attest to
because after writing lines of code, finally getting a dialogue box to say on a
computer screen, “HELLO WORLD”, created this immense feeling of achievement.
This sense of fulfillment and belonging was the final question, she maintains
eye contact for the majority of the conversation, and it was clear she had a
true interest in Computer science, so I asked about fitting in, and if she felt
like she belonged, she laughed a little, and answered with, “Rochester
diversity, any where else would be shunned… a mixed girl, going into
computer science”, on top of that she clearly takes an interest in learning new
languages, as American Sign Language is on her radar. When referring to
rochester there was a new light in her voice, she was referring to both
Rochester the city, and Rochester Institute of Technology, to which she was
accepted for Computer Science. I specifically setup the interview to eliminate
any preconceived notions I had about the person being interviewed. It is
inevitable that Tevanna will continue to meet people that judge her prior, but
I know that she will challenge those assumptions as she had challenged mine.
Interview with Ty'Johnna
by Mia
Optimism is a rare trait to find in a person. Many people nowadays
aren't as hopeful and happy about what they could be doing with their life. My
whole time speaking with Ty’Johnna, she never seemed to doubt herself. “Who are
some people that greatly impacted your life?” she immediately answered with
God. He has taken such a huge role in her life and is someone she believes she
can always turn to in times of need. Her father is another important person in
her life, she can rely on him for anything and is always there for her. “What
can you see yourself doing in the future?” “ I want to go to go to
college for music and hopefully make it big someday.” one thing from this that
really stuck with me is that she said she doesn't want to become famous just
for money, but to make an impact in some way and do something good with her
fame which is a really amazing thing. “Who is your favorite music artist?” like
anyone, Ty’johnna couldn't choose just one. Chris Brown, Beyonce and J. Cole. “
I know this might be crazy to say, but I honestly think Chris Brown is just as
talented as Michael Jackson.” she said. “ What are some things you do to calm
yourself when you get frustrated?” “ i pray, it always helps and God just
makes things better.” “ Where would you live if you could live anywhere?” she
believes that Los Angeles would be a great place to live. Not only because she
thinks its amazing, but it could be a place where she could get noticed and could quite possibly help her
with her future career. “What are some big goals you want to achieve?” her
dream is to be signed to a record label and make it big in the music industry.
But she wants to make sure to graduate college and get a degree first which is
an important thing to her. Seeing how confident Ty’Johnna was in herself of
what she could do in the future was such a rare thing with teens these days but
I enjoyed seeing her be so hopeful.
Interview with Gianni
by Darla
It was a snowy day in
School of the Arts, a wonderful time to learn more about the intriguing student
with the name of Gianni Barberro. We decided to talk while sitting on the dusky
gray stairs by our Journalism classroom. Although somewhat reserved, he seemed
comfortable to open up, and was relaxed in his navy sweatshirt.
To start things off, I began to question him about his childhood,
I asked if anyone significant in his life gave him advice that shaped who he
was today. He hesitated to ponder, and gave me a surprising response. It is
common to remember a lesson a parent, teacher or friend taught, but instead
what really struck him was a quote from Shrek; “People have layers like
onions”. They sure have some deep quotes embedded in children movies. Shortly
after i asked about any turning points so far he's experienced, and any regrets
with the route he chose to take. Since he is young, he understandably hasn't
have many yet, as he expressed. However, he thinks where he chose to go to high
school affected him for the better. “I could of went to a Catholic school but
there would be dead Jesus’ everywhere, and It would terrify me”, he gulps in
the midst of speaking. It seems as if he feels more safe and at ease in the
school he chose to attend instead.
The conversation then started to revolve around opinions. I was
curious to know what Gianni thought was the best quality or personality trait
everyone should own. To that he answered, “Silence. Everyone should learn to
not talk”. And with that I agreed, and the interview came to a pause, so we
could both have a brief moment of sweet silence. Then it was time to bring the
discussion back to life, so we chatted about what type of things brighten his
day. Quickly he smiled with his words, “My cats, I have 3 cats, Buster knows
how to turn on lights which is pretty cool, but he wakes me up”
The time came to ask one of my favorite questions, “Is there
anything controversial that you believe that most have yet to find out about?”
And I certainly got an interesting response that I was not prepared for.
Barbero declared his belief of aliens, “I have seen them before so they are
real”. I don't think I've ever met someone who've seen them in person, so I
wanted to hear more about the experience. I asked him to describe that memory,
but he shut down my slight interrogation, saying he cannot talk about it, while
having a very distant and terrified look plastered on his face, as if he was
sworn to secrecy. Gianni diverges my attention to the random red pole in front
of us, but i continued to try to ask him why he doesn't want to discuss the
aliens. “People get violent when I say they are real”, he reveals. I wished to
get more of an explanation, but i did not want to scare him away.
Finally, I asked if there was anything at all he felt like sharing
to the world, something he never found the right opportunity to do so. “Uh” he
stumbled while clicking his pen, “If I was a celebrity, I
would leak my nudes to everyone so millions would see my naked body”. With
that, came my cue to end this unique interview.
Interview
with Allayzia
by Jordan
My morning started off as
usual, waking up late for school and having to deal with Rochester’s harsh
winter. School was the last place I would have liked to be at, but I felt an
odd urge to push through the day. It wasn’t until I had my journalism class I
realized I had an important interview that needed to be done. With a lot of
stress on everyone figuring out who they were going to be partnered together
with, I got an understanding on the assignment itself why partners were
supposed to be randomly chosen. My interviewee Allayzia, was abruptly chosen to
work with me and I felt the quality would be interview would be more organic
because, of having a prior friendship with her. The chaotic atmosphere of the
classroom was too much to endure for the both of us, so I advised we change of
our surroundings. Thinking on my feet, I came up with the idea of asking a
nearby teacher to use their room to conduct my interview. With a change in the
setting, I began to feel comfortable prepare to get a better understanding on
who Allayzia is.
Before
the interview started I noticed her nervous body language and small but sudden
burst of emotion, it was almost like she had a desire to be interviewed her
whole life. As I began asking questions about her motivations in life, a sudden
change in the way she delivered her answers made me realize how interesting it
is to hear what inspires your peers. She spoke on her early drive to perform
“I’ve always had this drive to perform, I was singing and dancing at a young
age just didn’t always have the
resources and support systems needed.” Whenever I asked questions about
personal social preferences, she would become flustered before answering. When
I asked how she chooses to interact around different crowds she said “I always
express myself no matter who is around, I love to meet new people so I try my
best to show my real me on any first impression.” Even speaking on how she
adjusted for high school Allayzia kept her cool and answered sincerely. I could
tell everything she said was natural and not sugar coated making me know for
sure my interview tactics were a success.
Not once did I feel a change in the comfortable environment built from
this interview and I an outside look on how a friend sees life.
Interview with Jordan
by Allayzia C.
It was Wednesday, just about a
quarter past noon in the frigid city of Rochester, New York; Jordan sat
diagonally from me in what was Ms. Parker’s journalism class. I wouldn’t have
foreseen our pairing together for the assigned interview project, but after
exchanged irritabilities between students and teachers and the rearranging of
partners, it was decided that I’d be his interviewer, and he would be mine.
Us having both been slightly behind,
Jordan managed to finish his interview questions with an ease that was almost
admirable; his stoic ambience never wavering and time being no worry. You’d expect nothing less from him though,
considering Jordan has always possessed such calm and perhaps, “content”
qualities.
When faced with the task of finding
an area to interview, Jordan makes a quick and fair decision to use SOTA math
teacher, Mr. DellaGloria’s room; after he politely asked for permission of
course. This was an option I would’ve never thought of; considering that the
room was reasonably empty, quiet and right next door, it was a perfect decision
on his part. After letting me choose a seat, Jordan sits across from me, legs
outstretched from under the desk and hands pocketed away in his “OnlyNY” black
hoodie. Before really beginning the interview, I ask Jordan for his full name,
mostly for laughs, but also to give him the opportunity to introduce himself.
Much to my surprise, Jordan so humbly mentions that his middle name is Ayinde, which we later discovered means we gave praises and he came in the language of
the Yoruba people, an ethnic group south west of Nigeria. “Nah, I don’t really
like it.” he mentions, not rudely, but
out of sheer honesty and reservedness.
Jordan’s not one to boast, but when faced with the
following question regarding what he wished others knew about him, he is
nothing short of confident. “I have a lot of talents that are unknown, but I
got them.” It wasn’t until I asked him to elaborate that I was lucky enough to
hear about them; he takes a significant pause, perhaps to collect his thoughts,
and answers, “I’m creative when it comes to, like, music aspect? When it comes
to things to add into music, maybe ad libs or lyrics. I’m also decent at
editing videos.”
His ambition is self-driven, he notes that the hope to
better himself and his future is what keeps him inspired; to “be the best
Jordan” as he put it simply. I then ask him what he believes his purpose in
life is; now with a question like this, one that harbors so much intensity, it
is only expected that it would take some thought to respond. Jordan restates
the question inquisitively, stuttering slightly and says “To make my family
proud, to make myself proud.”
If you haven’t already noticed, Jordan holds himself to a
relatively high standard; he prioritizes self-progress, modesty and pride which
he showcases so well through his responses. For now, he’s a senior in
highschool, bagging groceries at Wegmans for minimum wage, but 5 years from now
Jordan plans on working for no one but himself. “I gotta make a mil by 23, I
don’t know what I’ll be doing, but I wanna be NOT clocking in at 23.” I
couldn’t help but chuckle at this, as his goal was fantasy like to me, but
Jordan displayed a type of assertiveness that had me convinced that, well, he
might just get there. Who was I to question
him? (well except as an interviewer of course).
I decided to finish things off by asking him if he had any
regrets. Jordan has lots of plans and ambitions for the future, but it leaves
me wondering what Jordans outlook on the past is like. To say the least, he was
unphased by this inquiry; he chuckles and jokingly says “Yeah I have a whole
bunch of regrets...Nah I don’t regret anything, I reflect on it though and try
to make different moves.” Impressed with this answer, I nod agreeably and bring
up another question about his middle name since I was still curious about it.
There were four minutes left of period 7 and I had learned much more about
Jordan than I did knowing of him for 5 years. Long story short, great guy. Five
stars. Ask him about his clothing line.
Interview
with Darla
By Gianni
My
interviewee was Darla, we sat on the stairs outside our classroom to talk. She
smiled broadly and laughed a lot throughout our interviews. I felt
relaxed and started out by asking her about her high school experience. She
thought and then shared she “enjoyed it
but is glad to be leaving”, but was excited about the senior art show. Darla
loves art and spends lots of time outside of school on her projects. One of
things that she has enjoyed about school is the people she has met. She
appreciates their “different perspectives” and has learned much from others.
Although her high school world would soon evaporate, I was curious about what
she wanted pursue, both as a kid and now as a young adult. She became excited
when I asked, when she was a kid she had a lot of aspirations and still does.
As a kid she wanted to be a singer, inspired by American Idol, she wanted to be
a banker, hairdresser, a clothes designer. She explained to me that creativity
is her passion and that the things she wants to do now all have their roots in
creativity. Darla is planning to attend SUNY Brockport for graphic design &
photography. At this point in my interview aspenleiter descended the stairs
behind us as she passed we both felt a chill and a thin layer of frost covered
the ground and stairs behind her. Both still recovering, we continue with our
interview. I ask Darla where her favorite place is, she asks to give two
answers one for Rochester and one for somewhere else. She gazes remenisently as
she describes a natural waterfall in arizona that mimics a water slide. The place
that she enjoys. Closer to home, is Stony Brook national park, “it’s a nice
place to get away to” I also explain how I have visited the park on many
occasions. Next i ask for her general opinion, Darla takes time to think about
this and finally comes up with, “people should look at everyone's perspective
even if they don’t agree with them”. I tell her “that is a good opinion”. We
leave the stairwell and head back inside of our classroom, I go to my desk and
fall asleep.
Interview with Carlos
By Claudia
Wednesday, March 14th 2018, Rochester. It’s a snowy day in this city in the State of New York. As I enter into the class at 12:10 a.m., like I always do, a voice draws my attention, it’s Carlo’s voice that wants to let me know that we are going to be partners for the new project that we have to do in class, it’s an interview. We are going to interview each other and write about it, so here I am. I already knew Carlos, and I can say that he is a really nice person and he is always “chilling” as he said during the interview. I started with really easy questions like “What song should be the theme of your life?” and “If you had the chance to live in another country which one would it be?”, but even if they were just normal questions the answers were really interesting. He was telling me how Drake helped him learning English when he moved here and that “Success” by Drake should be the theme of his life. This can be connected perfectly to another question, “What is something that you like to talk about?” and his answer was “The future” and this is what we started to talk about. It was really interesting to listen to his idea about changing, because he wants to change to make something good. He wants to be successful so he can help other people and his family and be able to do what he wants to do in his life. We talked about family, he talked about his family and his future family, how he wants and is going to take care of them. I decided to close the interview with a question that we hear everyday but unfortunately kinda no one wants to ask to really hear the answer. The question is “How are you?”. I think that sometimes it’s really important to ask people how they feel, but it’s useless if you don’t care about the answer. He looked surprised and then he replied with “You know what? I’m just chilling”. I think that it was the best way to close the interview and this story.
Interview
with Kiera
By Katelyn
On the cold Wednesday
afternoon of March 14th, Kiera sat down with me and answered a few questions
about something that has deeply impacted her life within the last year or so.
When Kiera takes her seat, she is dressed comfortably, though she is a bit
tense, as though she seems to have an idea of the kinds of questions that she
will be asked in the next minutes.
At first, there is only the
quiet of Kiera’s and my breathing, until I ask the first question of what has
deeply impacted her as of recent. She was hesitant for a few long seconds, but
she answered the question as best she could. “Uhh… my stepdad moving out of the
house, basically just my parents getting separated.”
Upon responding, Kiera’s
eyes were downcast, she made slight eye contact for two or three seconds at a
time, but that was about it. Her voice sounded down, and not at all excited to
be talking about a touchy subject, especially it being somewhat recent. The
next part was kind of like Kiera was reliving the situation when she closed her
eyes, she was not very happy about when she found out about what was happening,
since she had ended up being told about it by her mother right before she had
to take a Regents Chemistry exam; she had been asleep when the actual thing
happened. This was nerve wracking for her.
The frustration was clearly
evident in Kiera’s voice as she recalled there being no positive part of the
current situation, but there were many negative sides it when responding to the
third question, “There was a lot of drama, and we actually lost a lot of money.
We were struggling for some time - especially on top of college stuff right
around the corner.” This seemed like the hardest thing for Kiera to speak out
loud so far.
From that point, Kiera
becomes less tense when I asked her if the impact was fast or if it was slow;I
also asked her if she favored the impact to come quickly or slowly. She says
that it was a gradual build. “There was anger; both my mom and myself became
depressed.” A sullen look comes over Kiera’s face with those words, but it doesn’t
last for too long as she answer the next part, “I’d say I’m glad that this
happened quickly, because I would rather it happen fast, but not too fast to
where I had no idea what was happening. This way it gave me a lot of time to
process things.”
Finally reaching the final
question, asking how Kiera would go about this if she had the chance to decide
how something impacted her life. Kiera is less tense overall and she is looking
me in the eyes more often than not, her eyes no longer downcast as much as they
were just ten minutes ago. She smiles softly before responding: “I would...
honestly, I wouldn’t change much. I learned a lot about life in that bit of
time. Although, the money problem, I would have to change that.” We both laugh
at the last part, a smile lingering on Kiera’s face as the interview comes to a
close.
Interview with Victoria
By: JaVanse’
It
was around 12:30 on Wednesday afternoon, to the right of me was a window; snow
falling down endlessly. In front of me was a computer, the screen displaying 6
questions I had thought up the previous day. I turned around to face
Victoria, she looked at me and smiled. We shared this look bringing us to an
agreement that a computer room, filled with other people was not the best
interviewing place, but neither of us really cared. She moved from the
corner she usually sits in and sat closer to me. She was very relaxed in her
chair, almost as if she didn’t find the interview to be awkward or nerve
racking in any way. Good, I thought, the interview would be a breeze, it would
be over in the blink of an eye.
I sat
up straight, grabbed my phone and prepared to ask the first question. “If you
found out this was your last weekend on earth, how would you spend it?” She
smiled, her face revealing her assumptions for the rest of the interview. “ I
would eat a lot of good food and I wouldn’t worry about getting fat. And
probably watch a lot of Netflix,” the answer just rolled off her tongue, like
it was no big deal. I mean, wouldn’t everyone want to spend their last weekend
on earth carelessly eating whatever they want and watching Netflix? I didn’t
enjoy how the question didn’t require any thought for her, “what would
you be watching?”
“The end of the F***ing
World,” cheap answer, I had just recommended it to her minutes before our
interview began. I decided to let it go, remembering that my other questions
were considerably hard given that I hadn’t prepared the usual type. When I
asked the next question, her face straightened, as I had expected, she wasn’t
prepared for it. “What is something that you’ve never told anyone before?” The
two of us aren’t best friends, I didn’t expect her to give me an honest answer
or an answer at all. I assured her that if she wasn’t comfortable sharing
anything she didn’t have to. She hesitated, a smile crossed her face again,
this time appearing more nervous. She looked up at the ceiling then down at the
floor and finally back at me. For the next minute or so she continued thinking
of any possible answer. There was an awkward silence among us aside from the
occasional “uh” or “um,” from her. Finally, she admitted that she couldn’t
think of anything to share.
Her
foot in a cat covered van began to fidget and shake. Was she nervous? Were my
questions too much? Was she just cold? The room was a bit chilly and the
basketball shorts she wore didn’t cover her entire leg. “These are hard
questions,” she joked with me. True. I thought about it for a moment and
questioned if I should go with more generic questions, but I decided against
it. Her phone was in her hands flipped over, she was looking down at the back
of it, tracing the camera with her finger. “What is one moment in your life you
would go back and change?” Her face lightened and she started laughing
again, “the entire seventh and eighth grade,” at this point both of us were
laughing, middle school was a regretful time. “ I was just very cringy and
annoying”. The next few minutes consisted of us laughing and reminiscing on
those odd years of our lives. The next
questions were bound to bring me to a closer understanding of who she is.
“How
do you want to die,” this question can help reveal who someone is and their
depth. She surprised me with her answer which only took her a couple
seconds to come up with. “Bungee jumping,” she moved her fingers in air quotes,
“accidentally goes wrong”. She giggled and repeated the gesture once more.
Her answer intrigued me, why bungee jumping? Why would it “accidentally”
go wrong? She questioned me, to get reassurance, on whether or not that was a
fun activity. Her lips curled slightly upwards, “it would be a fun death.”
Throughout the entirety of the interview Victoria appeared either happy or deep
in thought. Happiness is often misconceived and misunderstood. It’s almost
impossible to know if someone is truly happy or not because not everyone wears
their emotions on their sleeve. As my final question, I decided to dig deep
into her life, “can you describe the last time you were genuinely happy?”
She began fiddling with her phone,
flipping it over to its front then its back then back to the front. She
smirked, then joked “being happy never heard of that.” She later explained how she lived in a house
some years ago and would always go over
to the neighbors and for some reason felt happier there. Maybe it was because
it was the house she had lived in the longest or maybe it was because she was
close to her neighbors. As our conversation continued she revealed a more
specific example. She shared with me how “we use to take sticks and sharpen
them and fight.” The ‘we’ was herself and two friends. As she told that story,
her eyes lit up and a grin crossed her faced. She seemed genuinely happy as she
recounted that particular event from the past. It made me glad to have asked
the question because if I never did, she may have never thought about that
moment and even for a second feel that happiness again.
*********************************************************************************
Interview with Shayla
By Melody
In the
middle of March, freezing cold and snowy morning, Shayla Brown and I met in our
old high school hallway to have an interview. We thought it would be perfect
for us to have an interview there, it would bring a lot of memories. I knew
Shayla since we were in middle school but we haven’t seen each other in a
couple of years, we took our separate ways. But who knew that one day I would have
a chance to interview Shayla? While we both sat down by the window next to the
third floor office, I noticed she was excited to be here but at the same time
she was calm. She was wearing comfortable clothes, a grey sweater with a pair
of black jeans, light brown Uggs, and a grey headband. After we got situated we
looked at each other and smiled. That's when I started the interview and asked
her about her career and background story.
“So I
know that you are professional singer, you have traveled to many places, and
have won a couple awards. But not a lot of people know how you started. How
long have you been singing and how what got you into singing? Is there someone
you admire?” She started laughing and looked at me.
“It’s
actually a funny story. I’ve been singing since 6th grade. At first I didn’t
like singing. I was part of a choir in elementary school and we practiced
during our Social Studies class. I hated that class so basically it was
something to do to get out of class. That’s actually how I started singing.
Then after the years I got better at singing and decided that’s what I was
going to do. And who do admire?” She paused for a second and started looking at
the ceiling. “I admire my mom, she takes care of me and she gets things done in
order to keep her kids happy and I like that about her.”
-“I know
that a couple artists don’t actually like their career and they just do it just
because. Do you enjoy performing?”
“Yes, I
enjoy performing because of the andradalin, I think it is very fun and
especially because I like the attention from my fans.”
“Is there
anything that you have learned throughout your career that you wish you knew
sooner?”
She took
a deep breath and thought for a second. She looked as if she didn’t know what
to say at the moment but then she said,“I guess… to listen to more types of
music not just radio songs. So you don’t stick with one genre.”
“Is there
any advice you would like to give young people who are interested in singing or
just performing in general?”
“I would
say to young singers that you can’t really perform if you are nervous or have
stage fright. Just relax and tell yourself that you got this and just do what
you got to do. Also for singers, always open your mouth, don’t sing like
this..” She sings with her mouth slightly open.
-“Was
there a challenge you had to face to accomplish your goals?”
-“Well
yeah, when I was younger I sang weird, I had to learn how to sing properly.”
-“If you
wouldn’t have been a singer, what would you be doing right now?”
-“I would
be a medical technologist. I think it’s fun and my mom is a medical
technologist. I would’ve followed her footsteps.”
“Okay well that’s all I have for you today
Shayla, It was nice talking to you, it’s really an honor.” I shook her hand and
laughed.
Interview with Giorgia
By Zanayia
On a
snowy Wednesday afternoon, I had the pleasure of interviewing Giorgia in the
library. She is a exchange student from Italy so it was exciting to hear her
take on certain aspects in life. She was wearing a nice top and her hair pulled
to the front.Our conversation flowed very well, we were able to talk to each
other with such ease , and we related to each other more than I thought , being
that we grew up in totally different parts of the world.I began this interview
by asking her ,”Who is the most influential person in your life and what kind
of impact have they had on you?” She stated her best friend fit this
description. Which was quite fascinating being that most people usually go
toward a parent or a teacher of some sort , so it was good to know that people
of the same age could have such a huge impact on one another. Her best friend
is very trustworthy and she has “no worries” when it comes down to her friends
loyalty.I could relate on this subject being that we both have great friends
that we can rely on and trust with anything we needed. “After highschool what
do you you see yourself doing?” Giorgia explains her dream is to be an actress
but she also has the thought of going into psychology. She enjoys it here in
the US , but she believes she will continue her journey back at home so she can
stay close with her family. I completely understood her decision, especially
because when I asked her who in her life is she most connected to she explained
it was her mom and bestfriend, she could tell them anything that was on her
mind and trusted them both completely. The question, “who is your favorite
musician and why?” came about and I was very intrigued to see what she would
say being that she may of grown up around different music being that she’s not
from here. She is interested in K Pop, which is Korean popular music , in
particular the group BTS. She enjoys that they take their music very seriously
and “talk about real stuff that matters like depression and economic problems.”
This part was so informational and fascinating, because I always wondered the
meaning behind K Pop songs and why so many people are interested in it, so to
hear the pros of listening to K Pop first hand is very enjoyable.We realized we
both enjoyed hanging with friends and having time to ourselves to relax and
reflect.I ended this interview by asking her what did she feel her purpose in
life was and she said mainly to “find my way and enjoy it.” This was honestly
the perfect ending to the interview because it was brief yet very insightful.
In these few minutes I realized Giorgia is a very thoughtful , genuine
person.Giorgia and I have so much in common, and it was a pleasure getting to
know her.
Interview with Nashaly
By Azana
In a dimly lit Rochester City School District classroom, with the
noise of the chatter and clatter of kids and keyboards, alongside the loud
hollow of wind with the frigid coldness that came along with the nasty March
Rochester snow, I conducted an interview with Nashaly. She was dressed
comfortably and warm, considering the weather, in a black pullover that looked
so soft that I wanted to touch it, but refrained so to keep the professionalism
of the interview. I had on my senior apparel hoodie on, with a pair of
sweatpants, since I had gym that morning. She had on her usual makeup adorning
her face and her black inky hair in waves down her back. I, however, had no
makeup adorning me, and I had my hair braided in cornrows. She was in good
spirits, a smile on her face, and joy in her eyes, despite the horrible
weather, and the hard journey that was the seventh period on a long dragging
Wednesday afternoon. I followed her mood, it was so contagious. We sat across
from each other, our bodies relaxed since we had no problems with each other,
said our formalities, and got to our assignment so we wouldn’t fail Ms.
Parker's class. She interviewed me first, so read that interview to get some
insight into my life, then I began to interview her. First, I had asked her,
‘What is the day you say your life had significantly changed?’ she paused to
mull over her answer before responding to me with her answer that,’This year,
senior year, has really affected me, and that it hit me that we’re going to be
adults,’Then I asked her the next question which was, ‘What is your Zodiac
sign, and do you believe in them, and if not, why?’ to which she responded
shifting in her seat slightly,’I’m a Cancer, and I do believe in them because I
am sensitive and emotional,’The following question, which was, ‘Food is a way
to tell a persons personality, so what is your favorite types of food?’ to
which she responded quickly, and with no hesitation, ‘I like Taco Bell,’ to
which we both agreed to and laughed together about. The next question was a
silly question to ask, but she responded either way, by answering the question,
’Marvel or DC Comics,’ with, ’Marvel’ with only the slightest of hesitation.
Then I suddenly got serious on her with my next question, and I had to ask the
question a few times for her to get what I was asking. I asked her, ‘What is
your opinion on cultural appropriation, and representation of not only black
and Hispanic people in media but also other types of races as well?’ to which
she responded to after a few moments of deep concentration to properly form her
thoughts, she replied, ‘Yeah there isn’t that many types of cultures in media,
and they need to include other types because there are different types of
cultures,’ Then my final question before we parted ways to probably put this
assignment off until hours before midnight on Friday, was something light to
not drag down the mood, which was, ‘What is your favorite color and why?’ to
which she replied smiling and happy,’ My favorite color is pink because it's
just a fun happy color,’. That concluded our interview and I learned, and
hopefully, you learned a lot about her through this interview. Thank you and
have a great day.
Interview with Sophia
By:
Daniel
On Wednesday
14th, 2018 a blizzard was hitting Rochester New York as it was just hit past
12:20 pm. I asked Sophia if she wanted to get interviewed. She said yes and
both of us went outside to the window. Outside was snowing really badly but I
continued with the interview. She was wearing her Sota softball sweater and she
was wearing pants. She had her phone in her hands. As I was getting my
questions to ask her she was mentally preparing to think about the answers and
the questions I might of asked. My first question was “when you were growing up
what was your favorite memory of being a kid”? She had a long pause and said “I
don’t really know what my favorite memory is” I told her to give it some
thought. She said ok. A couple of seconds later she answered. She said “my
favorite memory as a kid was spending time with my siblings. We used to play a
lot together. We made up a lot of our games and pretended to be on adventures.”
That is really awesome. I said. While thinking of how to say my next question
and writing down her response we were just talking back and forth and then and
she was engaged in the conversation we were having. Smiling some of the times
and other times thinking on how to answer the questions I was about to ask. I
was a little anxious on asking the questions because I did not want to offend
her but I continued the interview. I asked her “as you are finishing up high
school what is your favorite memory of being here?” She thought about it for a
couple of seconds and said “she did not know” but she continued to think and
she answered saying “ when I was in 10th grade I ate lunch in Mr. Tillitons
room and one day me and my friends tried to take lunch from the commons. Then
the next thing I started to notice was that the sentry was chasing after us and
we started running, and pretty soon it was like a cop chase.” I started to
laugh because I was not expecting that answer. That was a really hilariously
great answer to the question. As we were continuing I was trying to figure out
a way to say the question that it made sense to me and to Sophia as she is the
one to answer the question. I figured it out. I asked “when you move on
from highschool what is your dream job to do”? She answered saying “I really
don’t know what I want to be. When I was younger and a couple years ago I
wanted to be a baker and open up my own my bakery and to be chef, but I
realized I don’t like to bake and cook so I would like to be a social worker, a
psychology worker.” I said that sounds awesome and I hope that you get the job.
The next question I asked was “in the next 10 years where do you see yourself
living at”? She answered while giving it some thought and looking up at the
ceiling to
see
if the answer was their. She said “I might still live in Rochester but I would
like to live in England, Ireland or Australia.” I said those are very beautiful
places to live in. The next question I asked she thought about it a little
longer than the rest of the questions I asked her earlier. The question that I
had asked her was “ if you could relive your life again what would you do that
is different and how could that decision impact you now”? Like I said it
took her a little longer than usual to answer the question, she was thinking
hard to figure what to say or she was trying to word what she would change. She
answers with her arms cross and says “I would change the friends I had chosen
in middle school and high school because they used to talk about me behind my
back and I did not like that. I wish I would've picked the friends that I have
now.” I told her friends are hard to pick and I that I was sorry your old
friends did that to her and that I was glad she has friends that she has now.
We continued to talk before I asked the last question. It was 12:35. 15 minutes
since we started. It was still snowing really badly outside. So I asked her my
last question of the interview. I asked her “after many many years and you are
gone from this planet how would you like people to remember you”? She said that
was a tough question and I told her that is a hard question for me as well. She
answered saying “I want people to be scared of me, that I spoke the truth about
them or the subject they were talking about. That I was not scared to speak my
mind.” I told that is a good thing to have with you. Not to be scared to speak
your mind. Well I said thank you for a good interview and she said no problem
and we both left the blizzard outside and left. That was the end of the
interview with Sophia. It was a good interview, and I learned a lot from her.
This is Daniel signing out.
Interview with Alex White :
By:Tahtiannah
It was a
freezing snowy winter day in Rochester Ny where I had the chance to converse with Alex personally . It was a wednesday , March
14th of 2018 to be exact. Shortly after 12 in the afternoon the interview had
took place with myself and my interviewee Alex White. Alex white is currently a
student teacher at School Of The Arts who’s about 5’10 and pretty outgoing. I
know it may seem strange that im interviewing a student teacher but he appeared
to be rare. He had on long pattern socks with a striped long sleeve. His hair
was also to the side with a sharp cut. His appearance stood out because his
look was very unique. He appears to want to eventually move to chicago where he
begins a successful career being a teacher “obviously” he said . Starting a
family is on his to do list when time flys. His goal is to be that
teacher that actually makes a difference. Not only did he want to make a
difference he wanted to make a positive one. According to Alex “ A good teacher
can make you love something you hate while a bad teacher can make you hate
something you love”. He gave a special shout out to his high school english
teacher Robert Berry who specifically encouraged him to go for his dreams. Alex
and his teacher Robert still communicate constantly . Although his teacher
happened to impact him so did his parents. “This may sound cliche but my
parents have been there throughout the ups and downs”, he says. Later on in the
interview he began to speak on what he also would like to do . Alex says that
even though he wants to become a teacher he would like to also go back to
school to learn how to teach art. Art is also something he takes interest in
despite the fact teaching is his first priority. Although Alex wants to become
a teacher he has a life outside of that. “ People tend to lose out on the fact
teachers are people too.” He made this statement which is pretty true stating
that outside of work he also had other things that he may do or have to worry
about. Which related to his favorite band he mentioned to me sitting in his
chair ecstatic to share. Alex enjoys the band called Cloud cult. “There
songs are about life and reason of existence”. This actually seems to relate
to Alex himself and the reason to keep
striving in being a teacher. “Teachers make a difference”.
Interview
with: Mr. Kelly
by
Melina
On a cold winter day in the library of School of
The Arts, Mr. Kelly is most likely to be found sorting books or occasionally
servicing the printer, perhaps refilling an ink cartridge. As I entered the library
I found him where I expected him to be, which was at the front desk, looking
through computer files as students made their way in and out of the area. I
greeted him with a kind hello, to which he immediately responded likewise, not
yet realizing that I had arrived for the interview until I mention it. With a
smile he leads me into his office, where we each take a seat at his desk, one
person on either side as I take out my cell phone and press record. He already
seemed interested before I could utter the words of my first question, and when
I finally ask it, he seems a little taken aback, though his initial surprise
quickly leaves him as he immediately provides an answer. I ask him about recent
events within the past few months involving gun control, and his response
was passionate and well thought out. “Um, well, I do believe in gun control.”
he begins, and I give a slight nod for him to continue. “I do believe also that
there should be protection of the second amendment, but the second amendment
doesn’t actually state what rules should be in place and what shouldn’t be.
Therefore, if congress wants to ban assault rifles, I’m all for it. If they
want to limit who can get guns, I’m all for it. So, that’s where I stand on
that.” After finishing with his first answer he gives me a nod as my cue to
move on, and intrigued by his first answer, I proceed to ask my next question,
which inquires about how he would proceed to raise awareness on school safety
and the surrounding issues. “I think if I wanted to spread the word as in what
we do out to the community, then I would explain to them, like, what we do and
how secure this whole school is. Our number one job is to make sure that
students stay safe, and I know people get upset, students get upset when they
have to go through the detectors - the metal detectors - but that’s for their
safety.” As he speaks he moves his hands, often taking small pauses to think
over his next sentence. “That’s for our safety as adults as well. But I would make
sure that the public knows that, and I would talk to students who feel like “Oh
my god, why would you do that, why do we have to do it”, well there’s a reason
for it. We want you to stay as safe as possible.” He finishes, seeming to be
satisfied with the answer he provided. I continue onto my next question
regarding our President and his proposal for teachers to carry firearms, and as
Mr. Kelly chuckles, it is clear to me that he finds the idea absurd. “Uh, I
would consider this one of the worst ideas of all time.” he says, and we both
share a short laugh before he continues. “Because we work with a lot of people,
a lot of teachers, who will lose their cellphones. Imagine them losing a gun.
Um,” he takes a breath, contemplating his next few words briefly. In that short
moment I could tell that he’d been giving these topics quite a bit of thought
over the past few days, perhaps weeks, without any knowledge that he’d even be
interviewed. I think about how clear and immediate his answers are, and after
the short pause, he continues. “There are teachers who have a hard time
controlling their classrooms, imagine them with a gun! But the biggest thing is
that no matter how well you’re trained, if something goes wrong, I mean there’s
already been two shootings by people that are allowed to have guns in school in
two different spots just this week. There’s nothing safe about a gun. People
say they’re made for protection and they’re not, they’re made for killing
things.” He ends his answer with a sigh, which let me know that I could
proceed. I asked him which proposal he’d favor out of banning assault rifles or
military grade weapons, or arming teachers with guns, and I received a response
that was to be expected. “I favor banning assault rifles, definitely ban military
rifles. I don’t think people in school should have guns. I’ve actually seen at
Freddy Thomas a police officer was dealing with a situation and a student came
up to him and took his gun out of the holster. So at that point, the police
officer had to pepper spray everyone in the hall, like around him, just to get
his gun back.” he told me. The incident at the other high school did surprise
me, and only further opened my eyes to see even more risks of weapons in
school. I asked him what made him think this direction was the correct one to
go in, and his immediate response was “Because this is a safe zone. The safest
place in which a student could be. If you have a gun inside of a school,
there’s always a risk.” As we near the end of the interview I asked him one
final question, informing him that it was the final one, to which he nodded
with a polite smile. I asked him what he thought the next step for us as
students would be, and he told me that we as students have already gotten off
to a good start. “I think that the students shouldn’t give up the fight to make
the change. I think they should start to educate themselves more on the
political process to see what the next steps are, and to slowly sign up to
vote. When they get of age, they can work with the political people to ensure
that there is change.” Our interview is interrupted by the door swinging open,
and a woman asking for assistance with the printer. Thankful that we at least
made it through the last question I pick up my things and stand, thanking him
for his time and leaving the library to return to class.
By Ty’Johnna Brown
Interview with Melody
By:
Shayla
Seventeen-year-old
Melody is a very bright and inspiring young pianist here at School of
the Arts. We were in in the middle of the hallway while the sun beamed down on
us and reflecting off the bright orange walls. She seemed a little nervous when
we started she sat up very tall wearing a memorial t-shirt of her brother and
jeans with a blue windbreaker and some low top black converse. fidgeted with
her hands while trying to look me in my eyes. I asked her a number of questions
that varied from where she started to where she plans on going from here to
find out who is the real Melody.
Melody is a young and
amazing pianist who believe it or not didnt even know she could play the piano
until she was 12 years old. I asked her when and how did she find out she could
play she answered with “ one day when i was 12 years old i was watching tv and
seen this lady and she was playing the piano so i asked my dad to buy me one
because it looked fun and very interesting and he got me one and i started
playing and found out i was actually good” while she answered the question in a
way it felt like she tried to avoid eye contact because when i asked she lifted
her head up and looked towards the smooth white ceiling and said um and thought
for a couple seconds and then completed the answers. After coming from Puerto
Rico at the age of 7 and not even knowing she could play the piano she states
“i don't know where i would be now if i never got that piano” when i asked if
she looked back to when she was seven does she think she would be here. I also
asked what makes her her and what her goal or aspiration in life was and she
replied with “i want to remain optimistic and caring and helpful to others and
i believe that thats what will make me happy in life and what i want to strive
for. Also some things that make me who i am is im very shy but also outgoing,
im friendly, i am always smiling, i'm happy, and caring and i really hope i
stay this way as my life continues.although her voice demonstrated a lot of
confidence her body language demonstrated something completely different and it
lacked confidence and she gave off a feeling as if her mind was in the
interview but she wasn't. I also asked her who her idol was and where she sees
herself in ten years and she answered with “Mr.Gabriel
because he can play anything and he has basically shaped me into the pianist i
am now and i would love to be as talented as he is one day and i will have
hopefully graduated college with my masters degree in musical education
teaching music to middle schoolers” when she answered it looked as if she was
more engaged or interested in this topic probably because she is anxious for
the future and what the future has in store for Mrs. Melody Caraballo although
shy she is a force to be reckoned with.
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Interview with Nasmere
By Kyra
On a cold Wednesday
morning, I had the pleasure of interviewing Nasmere, a calm, tranquil, and
interesting student. In his black hoodie and dark jeans he slumped back in his
chair and fidgeted with his keys as he prepared for my questions. Despite his
fidgeting and cool demeanor, Nasmere demonstrate genuine interest in the
questions and enthusiastic responses. He is very culturally versed and
influenced, choosing to dine with Ahmad Jamal, a jazz pianist, out of any historical
figure or celebrity. Jamal’s influence in modern soul music and rap inspires
Nasmere as he pursues a music producing career himself.
With $1,000,000 to spend
and two days to live, Nasmere said he would love to travel far from the dull
greys of Rochester to visit Sri Lanka because of his love for beautiful
tropical scenery, unique cuisine, and elephants. If we were to live on past
those two days, Nasmere hopes to become a platinum certified record producer
and own his own successful label with platinum artists that he has curated over
the years. He hopes that his current interest in producing music will evolve
into a successful career, and with his current portfolio of music, it surely
will.
Nasmere’s preference of
the cold over heat is clearly displayed when, if faced with the choice of
spending a week in the Sahara Desert vs. Antarctica, he chose Antarctica. His
primary reason, aside from preferring cold, was his desire to “make penguin
friends.” He clearly has a love for animals. Regarding humans, what Nasmere
values in himself and other people is simple. He appreciates good taste in
music (as expected), knowledge of fashion, and a sense of humor. One thing he
values in himself that not many people know about is his ability to play piano
that he has cultivated since the age of 10. He primarily plays jazz and blues
because of the distinct chord progressions and diminished chords, giving these
types of music unique sound.
His passions for music
and experiencing different cultures was obvious as his voice expressed
significant emphasis on any aspect of his answers that concerned these things.
His fidgeting would cease and he would suddenly become focused purely on his
response, his passion clearly displayed. Nasmere is very knowledgeable of the
world and his intentions within in it, and I personally look forward to his
achievements in the future.
By Ingrid Diaz
The interview took place
on March 14th, 2018, the window showed a snow filled ground and medium wind.
This all happened in a small, computer filled high school classroom.
As a high school senior,
it can be difficult to think about where you will be in the future or even how
you’re doing right now. There are friends and family and other influences in
our lives that may impact what we think about our lives.
I began the interview
the groundbreaking question, “What is your aspiration in life?” This can be
either a question in which people think a lot about, or one that's easy to
answer. Asking this question opened up the theme of questions I asked, which
were all about the present, the past and the future. Carina answered this
question very easily, I saw that she wasn’t scared and that she had probably
thought about this before. Her response was “I don’t want to sound cliche but,
to be happy. I want to do well enough to be comfortable and be able to support
myself.” From this, I grasped that her goal in life was really to be stable,
she wants to be able to sustain herself. Her happiness grows from her
stability, along with her self dependence.
My next question was a
bit less serious, but it still had to do with the people that construct
your/her life. I asked her “What is your zodiac sign? Do you feel that zodiac
signs have anything to do with your success or any acquaintances you make?”
Many people in this generation base their future and their decisions from these
signs, whether it’s true or not is based on the person. Carina answered this
very easily and forwards, she simply said “Cancer sucks as a name. Some
people have better signs, mine is just known for being emotional and frail. I
guess it does have to do with who you meet because some signs are compatible,
but not really, it’s just fun to look at.”
The third question went
in the same direction of the people in her life. I asked her “What or who do
you feel has the biggest impact in your life?” This question was a bit more
difficult for her to answer, I could tell that she was a bit hesitant. But she ended
up saying “My friends, I’ve noticed the impact they have on how I speak or how
I act. I adapt different beliefs from my friends because we’re always around
each other.” This part made me see that she is independent, yet she enjoys
knowing more about her friends, because she is able to grasp onto the things
they say.
The fourth question
drove into a more serious topic, I asked that If she could change anything
about her life, anything at all, what would she change? To this she simply said
that if she could change anything, she’d change the feeling of feeling like she
needs to go home immediately when she’s hanging around people. This showed me
that she is someone who enjoys people, but she still carries the feeling of
wanting to be on her own sometimes.
I then asked where she
saw herself five years ago, is it different from where she is now? Now, for
this question, she took a moment to think about it. Then after a minute, she
said “I feel like a lot changes, my major changes a lot but I still knew where
I was going. As of now, I work at the community theatre. It’s my job and it
allows me to meet new people. I never thought I’d be doing this, but I’m glad I
am.
In five years everything
could be different for a senior. You could be working in your dream job or you
could be working in Mcdonalds. That’s not different if your dream job is
Mcdonalds, but either way, not one of us is certain to where we will be in the
next year, nevermind the next five. Since the future is uncertain, I asked her
what she thought she’d be doing after high school. This was by far the easiest
question for her to answer. She answered this question very calmly, and simply
said “I feel like I’m very traditional, I’ll do my four years or even study
abroad, graduate and then work…”
The
interview was closed with an exchange of future plans and an addition to more
questions. We spoke about our high school majors, college majors, future goals,
and Beyonce. Speaking with Carina allowed me to see someone else’s future. The
way she answered her questions made me realize much more about high school,
college and life overall.
****************************************************************************
Interview with Deja
By Eileen
In our classroom, on a snowy Wednesday morning, I had the chance
to interview Deja. We sat by a cracked open window and were freezing the whole
time. The classroom felt like a calm environment as everyone was beginning
their own interviews. Deja was wearing as pretty striped shirt and cat eyed
glasses. We were both smiling as we began the interview.
As a senior in high school, Deja has big plans for her future.
“One goal of mine is that I want to be a screenwriter for a popular movie.”
Another goal of hers is to travel. Deja would love to go to Germany in the
future, “My mom was born there and I think the landscape is so pretty.”
When I asked Deja what
she would do if she won the lottery, she laughed, “Oh my gosh someone just
asked me this last night”. She would donate some to charity and then go travel
the world.
I asked her to pick a famous person that she would want to have
dinner with. She paused and thought about it for awhile. She struggled to come
up with a celebrity she liked enough to have a whole meal with. Finally she
said, “Jennifer Lawrence. I love her. It would be fun and she’d make it not
awkward.”
The trait that Deja is most proud of is her loyalty. “I like to be
there for people when they go through stuff.” It took no time for her to come
up with this trait which showed that it really is something that is important
to her.
As two SOTA students we agreed that some things could be improved
around school. Her biggest concern is the way that administration handles
things. “ I think they do things too quickly without thinking about what could
happen.” It was so great to interview Deja and I’m glad she was able to share
some her ideas with me.
*******************************************************************************
Interview with Michael
by Sara
After
being out of school with a migraine, I was hesitant to step into my noisy class
and start my interview with classmate.My classmate Michael was my
interview assignment. Never having spoken with him in our six-shared years of
school, I was unsure how our conversation would evolve. I was to be pleasantly
surprised. Michael looked a bit timid as he fiddled with his hands. We plowed
into our interview with me asking him to tell me about his childhood. He paused,
his black and gray SOTA jacket serving as a contrast to the white out that blew
through the trees on this cold mid March afternoon. “Um, as a kid i was really
talkative, energetic. I stayed to myself, always played with toys like building
Legos..” His voice trailed off.
I asked the next
question: Imagine yourself 10 years from now. What would you be? I watched as
he pondered on the question for a bit, “I would imagine I would still be
mellow, uh hopefully have a career. Steady job.” I could barely hear his voice,
he still spoke soft. I proceed with the next question, If you could have dinner
with anyone who would it be? Why? I thought I stumped him with this question,
he took awhile to answer. “This is a tough one, um, alright i’ll say Patrice
Bergeron. I play hockey and he plays hockey he's a warrior, his determination
is motivation.” It was interesting to me that he liked Hockey, he did not seem
like a sports person.
What advice would you
give to your younger self? “I’ll tell myself to talk to people don’t be
scared. Now, I can’t talk in large groups.” I was a bit surprised in his
response, he had a lot of courage at least talking to me. If you could be any
superhero or have any superpowers what would you be? “This is pretty simple
i'll be Batman. He’s pretty cool.” we both chuckled at his response, he seemed
to be open up a little bit. But, not too much. I was now on my final question,
Favorite childhood memory? “My first Amerks game, sitting in the stands I
realized how much I liked hockey and sports in general.” That was all the
questions I had for Michael he seemed like a cool kid for the small
conversation we had. We ended the interview and went back to our separate
places within the room. There was not that much time left in the class I saved
my work and the bell rung. I got up and headed to my next class.
*************************************************************************************************
*********************************************************************************
Interview with JaVanse
By Victoria
Originally I did not
plan on interviewing JaVanse. When I found out that I was, I did not know how
it would go because she is typically quiet in class. Although it ended up going
very well.
To start the
interview, I asked her what her favorite Pixar movie was. As she began to ask
if The Incredibles counted, I knew she was cool. She then started to talk about
how she likes superheroes, and she would want to be a combination of the best
characters in the movie, which includes Dash, Violet and even maybe Jack-Jack.
If you know the movie, Jack-Jacks power is a little unknown, for he bounces
between multiple personalities. I asked her to elaborate, and asked which part
of him she wanted. She told me the part where he is a devil type thing. Then
the conversation took an unexpected turn. I asked her for Netflix suggestions.
Although my question was not exactly personal to Javanse, I was still able to
know what she was like, and what she does like. She only gave me one title,
which was “The End of The Fucking World”.
She said how it was about two friends, including one who thinks he is a
psychopath, and likes to murder things. I found this interesting, because we
were just talking about her favorite children’s movie, and now about a
psychopath murderer. Of course, this does not mean JaVanse herself is murderer,
but I then learned that if she were to do something illegal, it would be
murder, or at least the alibi. I wanted to test out her murdering skills, so I
asked her if she would plan it out to see if she would avoid being caught. She
said yes, and watches many murder type shows; she also already knew her
statement for the police would be at home watching Netflix. Her plan was solid,
so if anyone would get away with murder, it would be JaVanse. As we continued
on the subject of murder, I found out that one of her hobbies is to write
murder mysteries. I now realize that I regret not asking more details, and to
be able to read one. Since JaVanse is a drama major, I asked why she isn’t a
creative writing major. She said that in 6th grade she thought she would be a
better at drama. While I had originally asked her what things she was good at,
she didn’t say she was good at anything but procrastination. I do not believe
that is the only thing she is good at. JaVanse started laughing at this as if
it were a joke, so I went along with it. I was still not able to get any more
information on what she was good at, unless you include her "being good at
nothing". We also talked about if JaVanse had any addictions; note that I
included that these could be illegal or not. When I said this to her, she
laughed. I am a little suspicious of this, because although there has been some
laughs throughout the entire interview, she did not deny any illegal
addictions. She did include though, that she loves some Polar Ice Extra gum,
and has basically a collection of Converse sneakers. I knew she wasn't lying,
for she was chewing gum at the moment, and of course wearing one of her pairs
of Converse. Typically a person would have one or two pairs, but she admitted
to about ten. In my last question for JaVanse, I learned how she shares her
initials with her father, of JCB. This was also cool because it was planned,
and she got her middle name from a loose translation of her dads name:
Christopher.
JaVanse has been an
interesting person to interview, and I have learned some cool things from her.
Especially to remember to always have an alibi.
***************************************************************************
Interview with Ellie
by Piper
I sat
next to Ellie, she was sitting comfortably in a coral sweatshirt, leggings and
converse “This is basically my outfit every day” she laughed. Ellie is a senior
drama major at School of the Arts, she changed her major from creative writing
because she loves acting. Her and I were doubles for the role of Daisy in
Biloxi Blues, her final show at here at SOTA. With only a few months left
until graduation I inquired what her hopes and aspirations were after high
school, like most seniors she plans on attending college. She plans on
attending college for communications and political science, “if I’m not sick of
school after four years I might go into law school”, she laughed. Ellie is a
very comfortable person, she sat calmly with her legs crossed on her chair as
we talked. I asked if there was anything in her life that she would change if
she could, she responded that she wouldn’t because she believes everything
leads to where she is today and she said “I am very happy and content with
where I am”. She is happy with where she is, and works hard towards her goals.
“Life isn’t handed to you and you have to really work for what you want” she
says, she learned this from her moms and they’ve instilled this in her over
time.
As I
talked to Ellie she repeatedly said how she loves talking to other people and
learning about them. When I asked her where she draws inspiration from to
motivate her and give her ideas she said “It’s my surroundings”. She says that
the cheesy happy stories that she always hears at the end of the news, about
people helping in their communities even though they have little to give, she
finds inspirational. She wants world peace and equality, so little stories
about others helping each other is an easy way for her to feel motivated. She
is surrounded by inspiration in her daily life, and it makes her very curious.
She thinks that because she is half Jewish, but also had Catholic influences
she is especially interested in other people’s religions. “I love learning
about other people’s religions and I think that most people don’t know that,
but that's something I want people to know”. We continued to talk, and joke
writing down little facts about each other as we went.
*******************************************************************************
Interview with Gustin
By Kevin
On a freezing wintry day
in Mrs.Parker's 5th period journalism class we were given the assignment of
conducting interviews amongst our peers. My assigned interviewee was Gustin
Cook. Right away as I was taking a seat to interview my peer I noticed a few
things that stood out to me, he had a fresh haircut he should've gotten a taper
but he didn't adhere to our advice when he asked what haircut should he get a
few days earlier. I also noticed he had on an R2D2 Star Wars T-shit and in that
instant I knew exactly where I was going with the interview. So I disregarded
the pre written questions I had and started from scratch. I commented on his
t-shirt and his choice to not wear a jacket in the freezing room that had a
window cracked all the way open. He seemed to just brush it off as something he
didn't care about. The cold didn't bother him. His casualty of the whole
situation gave me reason to believe he didn't care about a lot of things. He
was lethargically leaning back in his chair chewing gum , shoes untied. The
vibe I was receiving was with just cause but who
could blame him, senioritis has taken its toll on all of us and it was
crippling. I followed up with if he was a big star wars fan and that peaked his
interest just like a dog perking its ears at the sound of the owner making a
sound in another room. “I’m a hugeeee Star Wars fan. My favorite character is
Yoda because he just so powerful and smart.” I received an overload of Star
Wars information that I didn’t know what to do with not being a die hard fan
and all. I continued the conversation with if he believed in extraterrestrial
life. He let out a hearty laugh at this as if it was the funniest thing he’s
heard all day. “ The universe is just so big it would be highly impossible for
us humans to be the only ones living in it.”
**************************************************************************
Interview with Zanayia
by Giorgia.
As the blizzard outside continued, there was a cozy atmosphere in the library as I asked Zanayia to go back to her clearest moment from when she was only five. With her eyes full of energy she started telling me of the day her uncle decided to remove the training wheels from her bicycle “I was at my grandma house, my uncle wanted me to try new things and decided to take my training wheels”, she said smiling, “ I went straight to the gate, I didn’t stop. I went for it. It was cute, you know, because even I fell I went for it.”she ends with a giggle on her face.
“If you”, I asked, “ could rewrite a moment of your life, which one would it be?”at the question, her energy followed her mind as she thought of the most appropriate response, “no”, she said, “I don’t think I would do it, I believe everything has a reason”, she explained while making herself more comfortable on her seat, “ not even the bad moments?”, I asked, “the sad memories?”,”not even does.”, she said, “ You know, I believe that I can learn from those moments and it’s not like I have any of those really sad memories, I have my ugly moments but they’re part of who I am, thanks to those moments I have learn, they made me aware of many things. They helped build my awareness.”.
As I erase my third question that asked how she would have rewritten it, I asked her which movie scene would she make part of her life, “ Do you know the movie “A Bronx tale”?”I deny shaking my head “Is this movie with this interracial couple and there is this scene where the guy tells the girls how he feels, in the future I would like to have someone that tells me how he would stay there for me and nothing else, that I can trust that would be there for me.”.
“Which character does” I continue “ represent you the most?”with a pensive smile she tells me her combination of characters, “There are many, it’s more of a combination, the fist one is Raven from “That’s so Raven”, the second one Jane, the girl from that movie that I told you before, how she value and care for herself”. She tell me of another scene where she doesn’t hesitate of giving up the relationship for her values, “ the last is from norwegian show, I watched with subtitles and there is this character Nora that respect herself.” After a little chat on the show and where I can watch it, I ask her if she feels like this is how she wants to be or if they represent her now, “They represent me now, you know they promote self respect and dignity and that’s how I want to be.”
As the bell is about to ring, I ask her my last question, “If you could read the last chapter of the book of your life, what would it say?” “I wouldn’t read it.” she says, “too risky, as I told you before for me everything as a reason and if could know how my life goes I would change somethings and take another road, i want to take the right road. Flow as it should.”
********************************************************************************
Interview With Kevin
By Gustin
On
March 14 at School Of The Arts Kevin Rosario was interviewed in room 339. He
was wearing what an average high schooler would wear, blue jeans with a grey
and blue hoodie. He was also wearing a watch and asked why he wore it and said
that it is “easy to check the time on it”. I started with basic questions.
“What are your plans after high school? I asked “ Where do you see yourself in
5 years? 10 years? He answered “ Attend RIT Computing Program, Living a decent
life, getting cheated on left and right. With no kids. And I will have a dog
and pet monkey” I believe this wasn’t a true sincere answer and if it was is
very sad, except for the monkey part that's awesome. And then I asked “ Is it
hard to help your parents adapt to american culture”. He answered “ Not really,
it does give me some inconveniences, having to talk on the phone for them and
appointments”. Thats is a huge responsibility and I admire that he does this
for his family. I then asked why he wanted to go into computing. He answered “
I like computers , I can’t see myself doing anything else. I want to be part of
their computer exploration program. Which is a good field to choose since there
is a lot of money to be made in this career. I asked a question that I got a
very interesting answer too. I asked “ If you were to meet any famous person
who would you want to talk to dead or alive?”. He answered “ Donald Trump,
because I want to know what is going thru his mind. He talks about stuff that
he doesn’t even have correct facts for”. The last question I asked was “ What
do you think should be done about mass shootings”. He answered “ I don’t think
guns should be completely taken away. I believe that they should be monitored.
This revealed to me that he does believe in gun control.
*********************************************************************************
Interview with Remy
By Danisha J. Rodriguez
It was a cold afternoon on Wednesday, March 14th in Rochester. I sat down in my usual spot, waiting for my partner Remy to walk over in order to begin our interview. He sits down across from me, relaxed and with a kind smile on his face. He exudes confidence, while I on the other hand, am a bit nervous as this is something that I am not used to. I pull up my six questions, and begin the interview.
“Where do you see yourself in 10 years, based off of what you plan to accomplish?” As I finish the question, Remy answers it with ease, as if he already knew that I was going to ask this question. “I see myself as a firefighter, saving lives as well as property.” He is involved in a firefighting program right now, helping him really gain the knowledge and skills he needs in order to go out and help those who need it. I nod my head as he answers, taking in all of this information. My next question really showed me a part of Remy that I hadn’t really seen before. “What would you say had inspired you to be the person you are today?” He takes a breath before answering, “Oh, that’s a good one. Probably America and patriotism has inspired me. I just wanna be the best I can be.” As he answers this question, his passion for America becomes evident, a passion that I had never seen before. As the interview progresses, his demeanor becomes even more relaxed and confident, really displaying his love for America and American history in the questions that were asked. The last question I asked drifted away from the seriousness of the past questions, showing the side of Remy that everyone knows. “If you could change something about yourself, what would it be and why?” He responded immediately, “I’d like to change my eyes so that I could have laser eyes.” We both laugh as he tells me that I don’t have to include that if I don’t want to, but I did because it shows a part of him that everyone is familiar with.
Interviewing Remy really allowed me to learn new things about him that I wouldn’t have known, and how comfortable we were in our environment really helped this interview run smoothly.
*******************************************************************************
Interview with Ingrid
By Carina Giannini
Far away from the snowy and dreary weather of mid-winter Rochester, Ingrid dreams of going on vacation to Bora Bora. She remembers the episodes of Keeping Up With The Kardashians, where the family took a vacation to the white sand beaches and clear blue oceans. She would want to do what they did on their luxury vacation— jet skiing, scuba diving, and being pampered at the spa. This is where she’d love to be instead.
Ingrid is ahead of her time; graduating high school a year early, and going straight to college instead of spending the year she gained on a gap year. She was originally part of the class of 2019, but now, taking both junior and senior classes, she will be graduating in 2018. What she looks forward to most after high school, however, isn’t necessarily college, but getting out into the workforce and making money. Being a year ahead of schedule could put her at an advantage over less determined classmates who will graduate and work later. She doesn’t know exactly what job she would want to do, and doesn’t quite identity with some people’s dream of one true job. She just wants to be a billionaire, she thinks and laughs, someplace where she can just show up and get paid without doing much. Maybe a high up amazon worker.
She’s motivated by herself; by thinking of the future. She weighs each decision she makes with how it will affect her life later on— unless there’s money involved, in which case she’ll be motivated to do anything. She's less motivated when people tell her to do something she already planned to do. She says that’s the quickest way to get her to never want to do anything. She gets sick of things easily, her tastes change easily and she flits from one favorite movie to another. The one thing that she stays true to, though, is her love of Beyoncé.
******************************************************************************
Interview with Quamae
By Tevanna Maurer
On Wednesday March 14th,
another normal day of classes at School of the Arts, I had the opportunity to
interview Quamae Newsome for a journalism assignment. The original intent of
the interview was to complete the assignment given but then I soon began to question
further out of interest and intrigument. Unlike most high school students he’s
confident in what he wants for his future, his plans are all well-thought and
the reason behind his wanting for this future is pure.
Tevanna: “After high school, what would you like to do
with your future?”
Quamae: ”I’m going to college for animation and
hopefully getting a job in California”
Tevanna: “If you could go to any college without any
expenses- including tuition, possible housing expenses, books, or other college
related expenses- which college would you go to?”
Quamae: “I would go to Cal Arts(California Institute of
the Arts), it’s the best animation college in the country. It’s right around
Los Angeles so it’s surrounded by animation.”
Tevanna: “Why California?”
Quamae: “Everything that has to do with animation is in
California, the college was actually founded by Walt Disney.”
Tevanna: “So you pretty much already answered this, but
where would you like to live in a couple years?”
Quamae: “Ideally I would be in California but I will
probably end up in New York City, their expenses are more than I would make in
college (California Institute of the Arts) so New York City would be better,
expenses wise. Also, it’s a lot easier to be noticed as an artist in New York
City so I would do that then move to California once I’m recognized”
Tevanna: “Is your high school experience what you
expected when you came to this school?”
Quamae: “Before I auditioned I had no clue this school
existed honestly, going into this school I didn’t know what to expect. It's
been a lot better than i thought it would be, even though there is little to no
supplies because of the lack of money they’ve still made it an enjoyable
experience here”
Tevanna: “If you’re deciding to attend college next year, which I now know
you are, what are you going to major in?”
Quamae: “I started out wanting to do cartooning when I
was around six years old. When I came to this school I knew I wanted to do
something related to art, I didn’t know what exactly what I wanted to go to
college for last year so I started to learn animation then.
Tevanna: “Why animation?”
Quamae: “I’m a visual learner, for me to be able to take
a model and move it around as I want and watch it play out. There's something
that connects to me- I don't know why- but there's some sort of emotional
connection, there's something inspirational about being able to move these
models around and bring them to life”
Tevanna: “My last question is what is your dream job and
why is that?”
Quamae: “My dream job would be working at Pixar and
making my own feature film because one, there is a certain prestige working at
Pixar and two, animating on my own and having people watching and enjoying them
gives me a big incentive, like with dance concert you go up there and express
yourself, that is how animation is for me, I've done dance concert and haven't
connected the same way the dancers do but that’s how animation is for me,
expressing myself and having a large audience watch and enjoy”
*****************************************************************************
Interview with Emmett
by Nadia Nadal
I caught up with Emmett
on a gray March afternoon. Despite there being a cold wind and noisy people in
the classroom, we managed to have a good chat. Emmett’s face is boldly framed
by dark, black glasses. I would say he was uncomfortable, but Emmett always
seems formal, his back posture strong and upright. His hands were folded gently
on his lap, his right ankle resting on his left knee. His body language told me
he was attentive and eager to start. I started out by asking him if he had the
chance to meet anyone in the world, who might it be. Emmett took a moment to
reflect then said, “Probably Lindsey Stirling; she's a musical artist,”
he continued, “That’s because she's been there for me through high school
and I really love her music, she helped me through hard times.” I sensed Emmett’s sensitivity and knew there
was much beneath the surface that he did not want to share. We continued our
conversation at first it was tense but we both had gotten comfortable with each
other and with answering questions. I followed through again and asked him if
he had gotten his own time machine what era would you visit , and who would you
visit at that time and why? He told me
“definitely go back to the 60’s or 70’s to see the beatles because i
really love them they had a huge impact on my life since i first learned and
heard about them”. Following through again emmett and i gotten comfortable with
asking questions i asked him being that everyone in our senior class is 17-18.
What age would you like to have graduated at by now? He responded well “16 or
17 would've been nice to just get out of here.college is a much better place
for individual learning and development”. The next question was a question that
sort of took the longest. Questions four was If you had the power to bring 3
people back from the dead who would you choose? And why do you strongly agree
on bringing back those certain 3 people? The first person he choose was john
lennon. He chose john lennon because we would really benefit from his ideas
right now because he was a big believer in peace. It took him a little while to
answer the next one because it was a about his grandfather. I can see the
expression in his face and it wasn't really pleasant at all. He named the
second person as her grandfather because he didn't really get to say goodbye.
Oddly the mood and expressions between us changed and was really dark. He
changed the position he was sitting and sat up straight back but not with his
leg over his knee or his hands touching each other just really blank. The third
person was Leonardo Da Vinci he said quoted “because the shit he made was
really awesome”. Following through to the next question to get the mood back up
he proceeded to out his left foot on his right knee again i asked say you won
the lottery you got 40 million dollars what would be the first thing you’d
spend it on? What would be your feelings as towards winning that money? For
example would you be excited , sad , confused , thrilled , upbeat? He moved his
hair out of his face and you can tell by the question asked he was excited to
answer and excited to quickly forget about the topic with his grandfather. He
said id be excited the very first thing id do is distribute it among family
depending on who needs it also i would gladly donate it to charity , make my
own business. And pay off all my moms bills. Last but not least i continued for
the last question i said what do you think about the phrase you live and learn?
Do you particularly like that phrase a lot? Would there be certain things you
switch around in that phrase? Again with the left foot on the right knee
sitting up straight with the sun beaming on his sweater he said absolutely
agree with that because lots of things i've learned in life i've had to learn
and teach myself i feel like that's the best form of learning. Great interview.
********************************************************************************
Interview with Piper
By Ellie Sklair
Piper and I got together
on a cloudy Wednesday afternoon, in period 4 Journalism. She sat across me in a
SOTA Senior Sweatshirt, leggings, and boots and from there we began our
conversation. Our first topic was about City Schools and her experience, and
history in the district. “I went to school #12, and did three weeks at Wilson
before going back to #12.” I ask her about last weeks School #12 tragedy of one
of their students dying. “It’s really really sad, and hit close to home.” We
sit and discuss the events that happened and eventually move on to something a
little more positive. “How do you believe going to a city school has affected
you in a positive way?” Piper thinks for a while weighing her options, “Well, I
believe this has given me a positive experience, because I have gotten to meet
kids in different backgrounds, and if I went to a suburban school that wouldn’t
be the case. I finds the teachers to be very supportive. I likes that RCSD
sports are connected with other schools, so she can meet other people.” In
between conversations me and Piper would laugh and joke about our time in
Biloxi Blues. Piper is a senior Drama major, and recently was in the show
“Biloxi Blues” and was my double as “Daisy Hannigan” I ask her what drew her to
our school, and specifically her major. “In sixth grade I thought I was going
to become an actress, which is different from now wanting to be an
engineer. A lot of my friends were going to SOTA, so it was easy to say I was
going there. It was also where I could pursue my “acting” career. Anyone who I
had ever met who went there, seemed to enjoy it.” I️ asked her about her
exciting plans this fall, and what she was planning on studying. “Well I plan
on going to either Binghamton, UB, Stevens Institute, or RIT. I am majoring as
a engineer, probably mechanical. And with a minor in German. I want to be able
to create new things or to help build products that make the world better. But
I also enjoy math and science. Learning a language helps to boost a person's
career and to go to give more options. I am already familiar with the language
so that helps.” Last year, Piper spent her junior year in Germany and traveling
Europe. In our conversation she weaves in different stories of her time there
and fondly reminisces of fun nights with friends and her favorite places. I️
ask after having such an impactful year who would you find as your inspiration
in life? “My inspiration, I think I am very influenced by anyone who comes into
my life because I like to learn about people and like to hear what people say.
If they catch my attention with how they act or present themselves I kind of
like to spend more time with them. I like confident people, and I think they
inspire me, and my parents of course. And my cousin Emily, because I thought
she was really cool. She was a gymnast, and I loved watching that. My cousin
Emily was there the first time I shaved my legs because she shaved hers.” “
Besides obviously Germany, what is something you are passionate?” She sits
there thinking a moment before answering, “I really like skiing, I love skiing.
(Talks about her pie with friend Carina) and I am very passionate about food,
And I love eating. I am a vegetarian and my mom is a really good cook so now I
love food. I am really into learning, especially going around the world and
learning about things. Traveling, seeing the sights. (Politically) I️ am
very passionate about the environment
but it is not anything a lot of people know about me. I also like to
socialize.” She talks about socializing with some of her closest friends, Kyra,
Carina, Sara, Eileen, and Eoin. As we wrap up our interview I️ ask her one
final question, “What is one thing you want to die before you die?” She looks
at me and smiles, “not die…No, I really want to fall in love. I also want to
travel a lot, and go cliff jumping. I
really want to learn how to speak languages. I
guess if there is one thing I could do it would be… fall in love. I like
human connection, I like getting close to people and getting to talk to them
and talk and talk and talk and talk.” Once again Piper gives me another memory
about Germany. It was nice getting to know Piper a little more, and getting to
know more intricate details about her life.
*********************************************************************************
Interview with Claudia
By Carlos J. Rolón
Claudia is an Italian foreign exchange student who I had the
opportunity to sit down and talk to. She was very calm since I've known her
since the beginning of the year because she is also a drama major. We started
by talkin about simple things to make her more comfortable. “What do you miss
from Rome?” I said. “The weather, i hate the snow now it's too cold.” in the
beginning of the year the snow was something that she wanted to experience and
now its something she cant stand. I figured she was gonna be like this towards the
snow after she experienced it cause that's how i was when i came from Puerto
Rico. she continued to saying that she also misses her family as well and how
its been too long.
Once i realized that she was comfortable I asked her what her
goals are for the future. “I want to be famous”, she laughed after saying this.
Once we both stopped giggling i told her that i want to become famous for my
acting and she said “Yeah that's one thing i want to pursue” Claudia is someone
that wants to express herself in many ways and the type of person that welcomes
change. It wasn’t surprising that later when I asked her what’s something
important to her and she said that it’s change. Claudia is someone who wants to
keep changing because being the same person is boring to her.
I later brought back up the fact that she said she wanted to be
famous and I wanted to know what in her life made her want to set this goal for
herself. That’s when I found out that Claudia and it turned out that she
had done a show in elementary, that’s when she began to get many compliments
and that made her realize from a very young age that she wanted to do something
to bring smiles to others.
This interview helped me understand the person Claudia is and
the type of person she is trying to become. Also, it showed me that me and her
are a lot more a like then I thought.
Interview with Tay’Von
By: Barlin Osman
As Tay’Von and I sat across from one another in
one of the corners of A339, we managed to completely drown out the rest of our
classmates who were also holding interviews and just focus on our conversation.
Tay’Von shifted nervously as I told him these questions would force him to
think in a way he most likely never has.
I started
the question and answer period with the question, “What event or item helped
shape you as a person? Why and how?” He thought carefully then, not long after,
his face lit up as he proceeded to tell me about his acceptance to his top
college, Pace University. I couldn’t help but listen with admiration as he
explained, “It made me realize that I actually can be the best
person that I can be and not take myself for granted and settle for less.”
Seeing that he has doubted himself in the past, great curiosity led me to ask,
“what do you always tell yourself in your mind to keep yourself going in dire
situations?” With the same smile still plastered on his face, Jackson pointed a
finger and said, without hesitation, “you da sh*t! And can’t nobody tell you
nothing less.” I let out a chuckle as he told me how often he reminds himself
of that on a daily basis.
Continuing on with the interview that felt more
like a casual conversation, I asked Jackson, “was there ever an event that
helped you realize your worth when you questioned your purpose on earth?” As if
he has already been asked this question, Jackson immediately answered with,
“probably when I got my lead as Usnavi in In The Heights. Before that, I was
getting, like, little ensemble roles and stuff…” He quickly caught himself as
he must have realized he sounded like he was complaining, “--- which I was fine
with and stuff but then as I started getting older, I was like, ‘man, I keep
getting ensemble, when am I finally gonna get that lead?’ And when it happened
I’m like, ‘okay! You da man! Keep pushin’!” I couldn’t help but notice the
musical posters hung up behind him as he talked about theatre as if it were his
escape from reality. I was and continue to be amazed at how being assigned a
certain role in a production could have such a significant impact on Jackson’s
life-- an impact strong enough to give Jackson such a sense of purpose.
Shifting to a more serious question and ostensibly
catching Jackson off guard with this one, I watched the reflection of the
windows on the lens of his glasses as I asked, “have you ever questioned the
faith you practice? Why? How’d you feel afterwards?” Jackson put his fingers on
his chin then answered with a solid, “no.” I tilted my head and furrowed my
brows in disbelief and he continued to explain. “I have never questioned
Christianity because with God on your side, any and everything is possible and
he can move mountains! He got me through hardships, he got me through bad times
and sad times. Just know that God is on your side.” Satisfied with his answer,
I decided to wrap up the interview with one last question.
Everyone has a story that deserves to be heard;
when I asked Jackson for his, he looked down at his feet as he took a moment to
think about the question. His body language made it seem as if he was thinking
of something that truly bothered him and because of that, I grew more and more
eager to hear his response. He finally looked up and I couldn't wait to hear
what would escape from his lips at that moment. Unfortunately, Jackson
completely shot down my question by responding with a simple, “I don’t know.” I
refused to take that for an answer so I rephrase my question multiple times then
finally gave up when he responded with, “well… I don’t remember ever having to,
like, eat dog food or nothin’ so…” I laughed and ended the interview but I
still wonder whether or not he was hiding something.
Tay’Von Jackson is a very witty person that has
a series of great things headed his way. I’m glad I was paired with Jackson
because this interview allowed me to learn about the things he cherishes most.
**************************************************************************************************
**************************************************************************************************
Interview with Helena Fick
By:
Anessa Gonzalez
On
Wednesday, March 14th 2018, I had the privilege to interview Helena. I had some
questions prepared for her, and some were a little challenging but she was able
to answer them without a problem. We walked out into the hallway on the third
floor and stood by the windowsill. You could see the snow falling outside and
felt a small draft near the window. I started off with the first simple
question, “where did you grow up?” She answered “Rochester New York.” I
proceeded on with the next question “what was your childhood like?” knowing
that this can be a difficult question for some to answer so I took a risk. She
surprised me with how open she was. She responded, “um fun fact, well my
childhood consisted of like moving place to place because my mom isn't a stable
person, so you know I went from that to going to like my grandmothers on the
weekend which was like the best part of my childhood” and I could understand
her because I could relate. I proceeded on to the next question that she seemed
to struggle with. I asked
“What is something that has really impacted your life?” There was a pause, then a “Hmmm” shortly after. Then the answer came to her mind and she responded, “I think highschool because school has been kind of my escape like you know if things are ever bad at home I have my friends at school.” I realised here that there is more to Helena than most people see. “Who is one of the most important people in your life? And why?” I asked. Helena jumped at this question and answered it without hesitation. “My grandmother. Without a doubt, because she has helped me more than I could ever repay her… she's just… amazing.” she seems very passionate about her grandmother and they must have a great relationship and unbreakable bond. The next question sitting on my paper waiting to be asked. “Are you happy with your life?” I asked. “ I am happy with my life, um, especially right now i'm just like finally on track you know I got in my top choice school so I know where i'm going to school I got my license yesterday so i'm finally on track”. Finally i asked the last question, “what brings out the best in you?” she responded ‘ um I wanna say success finally getting something you wanted to accomplish accomplished really shows who I am.” This assignment has allowed me to get to know Helena a little more on a personal level. She's a very hardworking person and will have as bright future. I'm glad I had the pleasure to interview her.
“What is something that has really impacted your life?” There was a pause, then a “Hmmm” shortly after. Then the answer came to her mind and she responded, “I think highschool because school has been kind of my escape like you know if things are ever bad at home I have my friends at school.” I realised here that there is more to Helena than most people see. “Who is one of the most important people in your life? And why?” I asked. Helena jumped at this question and answered it without hesitation. “My grandmother. Without a doubt, because she has helped me more than I could ever repay her… she's just… amazing.” she seems very passionate about her grandmother and they must have a great relationship and unbreakable bond. The next question sitting on my paper waiting to be asked. “Are you happy with your life?” I asked. “ I am happy with my life, um, especially right now i'm just like finally on track you know I got in my top choice school so I know where i'm going to school I got my license yesterday so i'm finally on track”. Finally i asked the last question, “what brings out the best in you?” she responded ‘ um I wanna say success finally getting something you wanted to accomplish accomplished really shows who I am.” This assignment has allowed me to get to know Helena a little more on a personal level. She's a very hardworking person and will have as bright future. I'm glad I had the pleasure to interview her.
Interview with Helena Fick
By:
Anessa Gonzalez
On
Wednesday, March 14th 2018, I had the privilege to interview Helena. I had some
questions prepared for her, and some were a little challenging but she was able
to answer them without a problem. We walked out into the hallway on the third
floor and stood by the windowsill. You could see the snow falling outside and
felt a small draft near the window. I started off with the first simple
question, “where did you grow up?” She answered “Rochester New York.” I
proceeded on with the next question “what was your childhood like?” knowing
that this can be a difficult question for some to answer so I took a risk. She
surprised me with how open she was. She responded, “um fun fact, well my
childhood consisted of like moving place to place because my mom isn't a stable
person, so you know I went from that to going to like my grandmothers on the
weekend which was like the best part of my childhood” and I could understand
her because I could relate. I proceeded on to the next question that she seemed
to struggle with. I asked
“What is something that has really impacted your life?” There was a pause, then a “Hmmm” shortly after. Then the answer came to her mind and she responded, “I think highschool because school has been kind of my escape like you know if things are ever bad at home I have my friends at school.” I realised here that there is more to Helena than most people see. “Who is one of the most important people in your life? And why?” I asked. Helena jumped at this question and answered it without hesitation. “My grandmother. Without a doubt, because she has helped me more than I could ever repay her… she's just… amazing.” she seems very passionate about her grandmother and they must have a great relationship and unbreakable bond. The next question sitting on my paper waiting to be asked. “Are you happy with your life?” I asked. “ I am happy with my life, um, especially right now i'm just like finally on track you know I got in my top choice school so I know where i'm going to school I got my license yesterday so i'm finally on track”. Finally i asked the last question, “what brings out the best in you?” she responded ‘ um I wanna say success finally getting something you wanted to accomplish accomplished really shows who I am.” This assignment has allowed me to get to know Helena a little more on a personal level. She's a very hardworking person and will have as bright future. I'm glad I had the pleasure to interview her.
“What is something that has really impacted your life?” There was a pause, then a “Hmmm” shortly after. Then the answer came to her mind and she responded, “I think highschool because school has been kind of my escape like you know if things are ever bad at home I have my friends at school.” I realised here that there is more to Helena than most people see. “Who is one of the most important people in your life? And why?” I asked. Helena jumped at this question and answered it without hesitation. “My grandmother. Without a doubt, because she has helped me more than I could ever repay her… she's just… amazing.” she seems very passionate about her grandmother and they must have a great relationship and unbreakable bond. The next question sitting on my paper waiting to be asked. “Are you happy with your life?” I asked. “ I am happy with my life, um, especially right now i'm just like finally on track you know I got in my top choice school so I know where i'm going to school I got my license yesterday so i'm finally on track”. Finally i asked the last question, “what brings out the best in you?” she responded ‘ um I wanna say success finally getting something you wanted to accomplish accomplished really shows who I am.” This assignment has allowed me to get to know Helena a little more on a personal level. She's a very hardworking person and will have as bright future. I'm glad I had the pleasure to interview her.
Interview with Helena Fick
By:
Anessa Gonzalez
On
Wednesday, March 14th 2018, I had the privilege to interview Helena. I had some
questions prepared for her, and some were a little challenging but she was able
to answer them without a problem. We walked out into the hallway on the third
floor and stood by the windowsill. You could see the snow falling outside and
felt a small draft near the window. I started off with the first simple
question, “where did you grow up?” She answered “Rochester New York.” I
proceeded on with the next question “what was your childhood like?” knowing
that this can be a difficult question for some to answer so I took a risk. She
surprised me with how open she was. She responded, “um fun fact, well my
childhood consisted of like moving place to place because my mom isn't a stable
person, so you know I went from that to going to like my grandmothers on the
weekend which was like the best part of my childhood” and I could understand
her because I could relate. I proceeded on to the next question that she seemed
to struggle with. I asked
“What is something that has really impacted your life?” There was a pause, then a “Hmmm” shortly after. Then the answer came to her mind and she responded, “I think highschool because school has been kind of my escape like you know if things are ever bad at home I have my friends at school.” I realised here that there is more to Helena than most people see. “Who is one of the most important people in your life? And why?” I asked. Helena jumped at this question and answered it without hesitation. “My grandmother. Without a doubt, because she has helped me more than I could ever repay her… she's just… amazing.” she seems very passionate about her grandmother and they must have a great relationship and unbreakable bond. The next question sitting on my paper waiting to be asked. “Are you happy with your life?” I asked. “ I am happy with my life, um, especially right now i'm just like finally on track you know I got in my top choice school so I know where i'm going to school I got my license yesterday so i'm finally on track”. Finally i asked the last question, “what brings out the best in you?” she responded ‘ um I wanna say success finally getting something you wanted to accomplish accomplished really shows who I am.” This assignment has allowed me to get to know Helena a little more on a personal level. She's a very hardworking person and will have as bright future. I'm glad I had the pleasure to interview her.
“What is something that has really impacted your life?” There was a pause, then a “Hmmm” shortly after. Then the answer came to her mind and she responded, “I think highschool because school has been kind of my escape like you know if things are ever bad at home I have my friends at school.” I realised here that there is more to Helena than most people see. “Who is one of the most important people in your life? And why?” I asked. Helena jumped at this question and answered it without hesitation. “My grandmother. Without a doubt, because she has helped me more than I could ever repay her… she's just… amazing.” she seems very passionate about her grandmother and they must have a great relationship and unbreakable bond. The next question sitting on my paper waiting to be asked. “Are you happy with your life?” I asked. “ I am happy with my life, um, especially right now i'm just like finally on track you know I got in my top choice school so I know where i'm going to school I got my license yesterday so i'm finally on track”. Finally i asked the last question, “what brings out the best in you?” she responded ‘ um I wanna say success finally getting something you wanted to accomplish accomplished really shows who I am.” This assignment has allowed me to get to know Helena a little more on a personal level. She's a very hardworking person and will have as bright future. I'm glad I had the pleasure to interview her.
Interview with Danisha
By R. Reyes
It was a sunny yet cold
day. During my sixth period lunch a peer of mine reminded me that we were
interviewing people today in class. I asked this person to tell me who I
was partnered up with in which he replied Danisha. I was excited to hear that name because I
would be interviewing someone who I already knew as a friend. However,
although I was her friend I was looking forward to learning more about her
character. I tend to arrive to class
before the bell rings so I was waiting for Danisha to get there. The day before the interview I remembered that
Mrs. Parker wanted us to see what our ‘interviewee’ was wearing. Danisha
was wearing a purple sweatshirt that was from last years dance concert. I already knew that she was a dance major,
but Seeing this showed me that dance concert played a major role in her life
here at Sota. After taking into account,
the clothes that she was wearing made her seem that she cared about her
appearance but she still wants to be comfortable at the same time. The
questions that were being asked during my interview were used to find what her
creative, yet ethical personality was.
“If you were home alone right now and you were to watch television; what
show would you watch and why?”(Reyes, 18).
I asked this question in order to find out what her childhood self would
do with her free time. When answering
this question Danisha appeared to be surprised by the question, it was as if
she was expecting something else. After some thinking she gave me a
complete yet very simple response: SpongeBob SquarePants. Her reasoning behind this was that it is a
show where you start to laugh right away; it has a direct path to people's
sense of humor. This answer I felt did
not give me enough in order to understand Danisha as a person, so I continued
with the interview. The next question
that I asked was see how imaginative Danisha can/could be. “If Pokemon were real, what pokemon would you choose to own and
why?”(Reyes, 18). Danisha’s response was what I thought it would be,
“Piplup”. Her knowledge of Pokemon was
as expected; very little; however, her
answer made me relate this to the animated show itself. Piplups ‘owner’(Dawn) in my opinion relates
to Danisha in the sense that she cares for all and wants for everyone to be the
best at what every they do. The next
question that I asked was to see how Danisha saw the world and how she could
change it. “If you could invent
something to change the world, what would it do and what would it prevent?”.
When asking the question I assumed that her answer would relate to
herself; maybe a product to make her morning easier, or to even make food taste
better. Her answer however did not
surprise me. Danisha said that she would
invent something that would be used in the medical field. A medicine that would be easily accessible
for people living in third world countries.
When Danisha was answering this I noticed that she was unsure with what
she would invent, but was positive that she wanted it to be something that
would help those in need. My next question was to see how much her goals
have changed since she was a child.
“Growing up what did you want to do?...if it has changed why do you
think that is?”. Danisha seemed to be
unsure with how to answer this question so she stated that she did not
know. She went on with how she never
really wanted to be anything when she was growing up, but she did say that she
knew that she wanted to do something that would help people. This is what I was looking for the whole time
and I was excited to discover that she wants to become a nurse. This now
made sense as to why all of her answers have related to helping people, it is
because she wants to go into a career where you help people everyday. My next question was to see how she would
represent. “If you were to get a tattoo
that represented yourself, what would the tattoo be?”. This question seemed to stop Danisha in her tracks. When answering this question she appeared to not fully support her answer.
Even though it appeared this way she gave an answer that is not very
rare but is very powerful. “A quote” This made sense to me because an
image says a thousand words and can be interpreted in a million different ways.
However a quote can be only taken in a one thing while representing the
topic itself. If the topic were to be
about Danisha, people could only relates that quote to things that represent
her, and her values. In conclusion, when
conducting this interview my goal was to discover what makes Danisha,
Danisha. I wanted to find out why she is
the way she is and I believe that i found out why. Danisha’s actions are not only based on
herself, but she makes them based on how they will impact the people around
her.
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