By Bridget Kinross – Sports Editor

The Jonathan Law Fishing Club is planning on having a great turnout this year. 

Club advisor and Law science teacher Mr. Morazzini hopes that students will be excited to learn more about fishing this year. 

“To me, fishing is one of the most important things in the world and I would love for other students who share the interest to come out and fish with us,” Morazzini said. 

The club has lost some graduating seniors, but new members have joined, which shows a promising future for the club.

There are some new ideas and topics coming to the club this year that Morazzini and the new members are very excited about. 

“We are planning on trying to use one of the sports fields to learn and do some casting practice and work on our casting distance and accuracy. Both are very important when targeting fish from the surf,” Morazzini said. 

The Fishing Club is planning workshops in school to improve the new members skill levels and get the students excited to fish. 

“We are excited to run some to run some in-house workshops with the new anglers,” Morazzini said. “We love to work on our fishing reel maintenance, discuss tackle, talk about local fish species, and tie rigs to prepare for our field trips.”

There are many students at Law who have shown interest in the Fishing Club. When the students who show a common interest get together, the connection creates a good bonding environment. 

“Our love for the sport and enjoyment of the outdoors keeps us connected with each other and with nature,” Morazzini said.

By Addison Schwing – Editorial and News Editor

The Jonathan Law Keyettes Club is holding its annual fall blood drive on October 31.

The blood drive is one of the Keyettes’ primary events, with members of the club, known as Keyettes, assisting Red Cross Volunteers. Keyettes Club Advisor Ms. Hull is responsible for organizing the drive and directing student volunteers in their duties. 

“We plan the drive and recruit donors,” Hull said. “We also have Keyettes volunteering at the drive in order to help register donors, hand out snacks, and walk donors between stations.”

The American Red Cross is a non-profit organization that supplies roughly 40% of all donated blood in the US. The Red Cross partners with Law every year to collect blood. 

“The Red Cross appreciates us running a high school drive because it encourages students to get into the habit of donating blood while they are young,” Hull said.

The blood drive will take place in the old gym on October 31, just in time for Halloween. The Keyettes are hoping for at least 20 units of blood. A single unit of blood is equal to 525 mL (one pint) of blood and can save up to three lives. 

Everyone who is able to donate blood is encouraged to do so. By donating, you are potentially helping save someone’s life who is in desperate need of a transfusion, or someone who has suffered a severe accident. 

Keyette Samantha Papcun is always happy to help the Red Cross during the blood drive. 

“Honestly, just knowing that what you’re doing is helping other people is really cool,” Papcun said.

By Malakai Pisacreta – Staff Reporter

The Jonathan Law Debate Club is looking for new members to discuss real world topics.

The club, which had its first meeting of the year on October 7, focuses on discussing topics that the club members decide and research. With this they make sure to respect others opinions and treat others with the respect they deserve even if they disagree

The main goal of the club is for members to be able to see issues from different perspectives.

“Expand membership and open up to perspectives other than their own,” Debate Club advisor Mr. Evanko said. “ I like to have the students interact more but I do occasionally share my opinion”

Diya Daruka, a sophomore at Law, shared some of her experiences with the club so far. 

“It’s a really fun club that people would enjoy and adds to the Law experience and helps with essay writings and Mr. Evanko is a great advisor,” Daruka said.

The first topic for the club is discussing vaping and the impact on schools and people.

“I like the club; it’s fun and I think it’s a good addition to the list of clubs,” Daruka said.

The club meets on Mondays in Evanko’s room.

By Morgan Taylor – Editor-In-Chief

Jonathan Law has seen a lot of changes this year, the latest being the addition of the Wellness Wing. 

Law Principal Mr. Thompson wanted to have a safe space for students to improve their mental health and overall well-being. The Wellness Wing serves this exact purpose.

“Everyone is really excited about the Wellness Wing and for students to be engaged in taking a meta moment for their health and well-being so that they can be their best selves and maximize their learning here at Jonathan Law,” Thompson said.

The Wing, located in the guidance hallway, holds two main new additions, one of which is the Zen Zone. 

“The Zen Zone is a space for students who need some time to gather their thoughts or de-stress so that they can then move forward successfully throughout the day,” said Director of School Counseling Mrs. Dunnuck.

The other new addition is called the Wellness Room, located where the Support Center was previously.

“The Wellness Room will be a space for students and adults to engage in activities that promote social-emotional health and well being,” said Dunnuck. “Some activities may include group counseling, presentations, stress-reducing activities such as yoga and mindfulness, and other activities that help our students to be engaged and ready to learn.”

The administration at Law wants to see what the students want out of the Wellness Room, so its uses will be based off of students needs, they are still being worked on and finished.

“We don’t know what will specifically be in each room yet because it is all still a work in progress,” Thompson said.

The main purpose of the Wellness Wing is to give students a place to thrive.

“We decided to create the Wellness Wing in order to respond to students taking a more mindful approach not only to learning but to be in the right place for learning and their well being,” Thompson said.

This corresponds with the district’s approach to student health and wellness.

Other changes in the school to benefit students are also approaching, including a revamping of the senior cafeteria.

“We will also be working on transforming the senior cafeteria over the next year into a more user-friendly space,” said Thompson. “We want to tie it into the Teaching and Learning Commons while also keeping it as a nice senior space.”

By Stephanie Caron – Entertainment Editor 

Natural Helpers is flourishing with new members and new projects this school year. 

The club is creating new opportunities for students to get involved and to lend a helping hand. 

“This year, the Natural Helpers club has grown to a whopping 50 members,” Natural Helpers advisor Ms. Smuniewski said. “With such a high number of students, we are hoping to make Jonathan Law’s ‘internal helping network’ better than ever. The Natural Helpers are the kind of kids who people go to with they’re stressed out or in need of advice, the kind of kids who notice when their peers are feeling down, and the kind of kids who are interested in helping their classmates with the anxieties of being a teenager.” 

This year, Natural Helpers teamed up with Sandy Hook Promise in encouraging students to “start with a hello.” This is aimed to combat violence in schools. 

“Our plans for the school year is to create activities for everyone that helps people feel more included in our school community and feeling good about themselves,” senior Katie Linn said. 

Natural Helpers also plan to do their annual De-stress Fest which gives students the chance to relax and have some fun before finals. 

“The annual ‘De-stress Fest’ is a week-long event where each day presents a new de-stress event,” Smuniewski said. “Some ideas we have for this include mindfulness activities (like yoga, meditation, coloring), games and puzzles, an ice-cream truck or build your own sundae day, and bringing a ‘Farm on Wheels’ to the school -basically a small petting zoo for students to hold/pet animals – it’s kind of therapeutic.”

Some of the other events that the Natural Helpers planned are, “Hey-Day”, decorating the wellness wing, and collecting canned goods around Thanksgiving.

“Goals I have for Natural Helpers is that I want everyone to leave here feeling proud to be a Natural Helper,” Linn said. “To make new friends and be approachable. I want everyone to have a good experience and feeling confident on how to handle certain situations.” 

By Mia Cerrato – Editorial Editor

Jonathan Law High School’s AP Art Studio class took a trip to the Milford Arts Fire House Art Gallery to learn more about the process of making art.

At the firehouse, they met Faustin Adeniran who was displaying his recycled art pieces. 

“Milford Art Council and the Fire House Art Gallery are two wonderful art resources in the community that foster visual and performing arts,” art teacher Mrs. Murphy said.

The students seemed to thoroughly enjoy the experience and took a lot from the field trip. 

“The trip went super well,” said senior Tess Rosato. “It was really interesting to meet a practicing artist and hear about his inspirations and career.”

Students were excited to meet a very experienced artist and take advice from him.

“I was able to meet an artist with works all over the world,” said senior Haleigh Neely. “I enjoyed the experience.”

Faustin went in depth about his aspirations and career for the students. 

“It was really fun and interesting to meet an artist and hear his story as well as the progress of his career,” said junior Rachna Vipparla.

Students were able to attempt their own piece of art using Faustin’s style, creativity and technique.

“I really liked when we got to try to make our own piece,” said junior Abigail Gattert. “It was very chaotic but also very fun.”

Through creating and working on their own piece, students are able to see the thinking process of Faustin Adenrian. 

“My favorite part was the workshop portion where we attempted to make a piece of art using Faustin’s style and technique,” said Rosato. “It’s harder than it looks!”

This trip influenced many student’s future work in their AP art class.

“Faustin influenced my artwork because he showed me that there are many ways to create mixed media pieces,” said Vipparla. “I learned that I should experiment with more materials and go out of my comfort zone with my work.”

Seeing the thinking process of another artist fuels more ideas for students and inspires them to try new things.

“It was nice to see some of his thinking process while making these unique pieces of art,” Neely.

The Jonathan Law art department Law has plans for future trips since this field trip was a success.

“We have many future plans for new field trips,” Vipparla said. “We are even going to an art museum in December.”

By Alexis Broderick – News Editor

The Jonathan Law Book Club is back and ready to discuss the books members read over the summer. 

For the first part of each meeting, the club discusses the book it is currently reading. There are no set discussion questions. 

“I like to have the conversation flow naturally based off of what everyone found most striking or compelling about the book,” librarian and Book Club advisor Ms. Briggs said.

For example, one recent book had them talking about how shocking the ending was. With other books, they’ve talked about the author’s world building, or whether the characters are relatable, or whether the plot kept them interested. 

Briggs said the Book Club has read a couple of duds, but for the most part they really tend to like the book picks. The club is essentially student-run; students or Briggs make a book suggestion which the students then vote on. The winner becomes the next Book Club book.

The club meets once a month during Common Time in the TLC. Typically, meetings are towards the end of the month so they don’t conflict with Advisory.

“Our pick for September/October is ‘Strange the Dreamer’ by Laini Taylor,” said Briggs. 

The club read realistic fiction over the summer and has been wanting to get back into fantasy, which is a popular genre for the group. 

In November/December, they’ll be reading “Artemis” by Andy Weir, a sci-fi novel about a heist on the moon.

The amount of kids in the club varies each month based on people’s availability, but each meeting typically has around six to eight students.

The Book Club’s primary goal is to enjoy literature. 

“Reading for pleasure can be hard to fit in when the school year is in full swing, but my wish for students is that they remember what they love about reading and use our books and discussion time as a fun ‘break’ from academics,” said Briggs.

Book Club began at Law in 2010. Before then, the library/media specialist before Briggs ran the club.

The club chooses two books to read over the summer. These are the books the club meets to discuss in September. 

“Picking summer books is nice because we have more time to read them, and it’s fine with me if this doubles as students’ summer reading,” said Briggs. 

By Addison Schwing – Editorial and News Editor

This year, Jonathan Law is teaming up with Sandy Hook Promise to encourage students to “start with hello.”

Last week, the Jonathan Law Natural Helpers Club announced the beginning of the “Start With Hello” campaign at Law, which aims to combat violence in schools. Natural Helpers Club President and Senior Morgan Taylor hope that this program will do some good in combating social isolation and making Law’s social environment better for everyone. 

“ ‘Start With Hello’ is the idea that helping people can be as simple as saying hello,” Taylor said. “By approaching others and making them feel included, we can make this school have a better environment.”

Sandy Hook Promise is a nonprofit organization formed by parents of victims of the Sandy Hook tragedy in 2012. “Start With Hello” was started by the organization to be implemented in schools across the nation to combat a rise in in-school violence. A representative from Sandy Hook Promise visited Law on September 23-24 to talk to students about their program and about how to help their fellow classmates in their time of need. 

School Psychologist Ms. D’Angelo works with Sandy Hook Promise. She believes that students should be the driving force of change at Law to support others. 

“Students are old enough to take responsibility, are more independent, and will rely on their friends as their confidants,” D’Angelo said.

The driving idea behind “Start With Hello” is the three-step process, which follows a straightforward formula: 1. See someone alone, 2. Reach out and help, 3. Start by saying hello.

Dean of Students Mr. Ragaini hopes that this program will help create a “culture of inclusion” at Law. 

“Social isolation is the overwhelming feeling of being left out, lonely, or treated like you are invisible,” Ragaini said. “Students who feel this way may pull away from society, struggle with learning and social development, or choose to hurt themselves or others. ‘Start With Hello’ teaches our students how to minimize social isolation and empathize with others.”

The Natural Helpers Club hopes to continue the positive momentum of the “Start With Hello” presentation. Taylor broke down some events the Natural Helpers plan to host this year. 

“The Natural Helpers are going to implement a lot of the ideas presented in the assembly,” she said. “We are planning to do a ‘Hey Day’ sometime soon. Hey Day is when we give out name tags to each student and ask everyone to meet someone new and ask them a few questions.” 

Natural Helpers meets weekly to plan events geared towards helping other students. For further questions, look for Taylor and other Natural Helpers, as well as advisor Mrs. Mercaldi. 

By Briana Hernandez – Staff Reporter

The Jonathan Law Latin Club meets every Thursday after school in Room 203.

These meetings are filled with Roman culture along with plans for fundraisers and field trips. Latin Club advisor Ms. Furs, came up with this year’s fundraiser which is to dress an administrator in a toga. 

This fundraiser will begin on October 1.

“Personally I was picturing Mr. Nigretti strutting around in a toga, and I don’t know about you, but that’s something I’d pay to see,” Latin Club President and junior Brianna Fraccola said. “This fundraiser is something fun and Roman themed, as an administrator would be wearing a toga.”

Events like these come from the community Latin Club. You don’t have to act like you’re something you’re not, it’s a very accepting community.

“Latin Club is a fun, chill environment where we can express out passion for Latin and the ancient world, we are a group of like minded people who all love Latin,” Latin Club Co-President and junior Rachna Vipparla said.

“Latin Club feels more like a get together of friends, the close knit, banter filled, lovely group of people,” Fraccola said. “What I gain is the feeling of belonging to a group of people where I can be myself, no judgement.”

There are many activities that go on within Latin Club from their fundraisers to their field trips. This year, they plan on trying again to go to Holiday Hill. As well going to the Metropolitan Museum in New York.

“I helped to start the Latin Club two years ago with the interest of my Latin 3 students at the time,” Furst said. 

Furst said she hopes the club continues to grow each year.

“My goal is that students will be able to participate and share the love of ancient languages with students around them,” Furst said. “I hope to incorporate students into the Latin Honor Society and to continue to grow an interest in a subject that is sometimes forgotten.”

In Latin Club, students not only get an indication of what the Roman culture was like, but they also look at the architecture and what types of foods they ate. They also get to hang out with friends and meet new people.

Students don’t have to be enrolled in Latin to join the club. Also, the meetings only last from 10 to 30 minutes.

By Jaelynn Shelton – Staff Reporter

The Jonathan Law Interact Club is excited to start the new year with events that give back to the community.

The club will have many opportunities for the members to get involved with and create new relationships.

“Interact club is a wonderful opportunity to get to meet like-minded students who want to help; they’re typically empathetic, and mindful of others,” Interact Club Advisor Ms. Jessel said. “It’s definitely a good club to give back to the community and by senior year you have an opportunity to possibly earn scholarships specifically just through Interact Club.”

The club tries to have between two and five events that members can sign up for each week. These events can contribute to members community service hours, which is great for college applications. 

“Community service is an excellent character builder; students broaden their perspectives and begin to look outside of their own life experiences,” said College and Career Center Coordinator Ms. Sylvia.

Interact Club allows students to get on board with new and interesting things. Students can also earn scholarships based on their community service from the club.

One annual event in particular is the OktoberFest, which is used to help raise money for Interact scholarships. These events are  made possible because of the club’s sponsorship from the Devon Rotary.

“It was really fun, there’s always a good time and I always had something to do,” junior Interact Club member Addison Schwing said.

Schwing said that when he volunteered he did security for the fest, which was unlike anything he’s done before, but he enjoyed the new perspective. 

Some other events the club does are a monthly Beth- El lunch on the weekends for just a few hours and selling raffle tickets for comedy shows.

The Interact Club is very flexible to those who are involved in sports or other clubs. They meet once a week for a few minutes after school in Room 228. They are always looking for new people to add to their tightly-packed group.

“You should join we meet once a week its for a few minutes and you get your volunteer hours,” Interact club member and sophomore Rachel Solkis said. “You don’t have to volunteer for everything we ask.”

The club has appealed the interest of a new freshman this year Samantha Burns.

“I wanted to be involved in the school, when we had the freshman welcome day they were explaining the club, and it sounded like fun,” Burns said. “It was a way to make new friends.”

Burns says she enjoys the club and the previous events she attended.

By Nora Sotomonte –  Staff reporter 

The Jonathan Law National Art Honor Society is looking forward to the upcoming year. 

The NAHS is a club run by art teacher Mrs. Murphy. The purpose of this club is to support its members to bring art education to the school and community. 

The NAHS has multiple events planned this year that the members are very excited about. Some of the events they have planned for this year are a new stepping stairwell and the students are planning something for the new Teaching and Learning Commons. 

This year, the group will work with the Milford Education Foundation to create a chair with a theme so they can raffle it off for student scholarships. Members are especially excited to be working on the stairwell. 

“This year we have a lot of plans for what we’re going to do,” senior Tess Rosato said. “Were going to paint another stairwell, were going to do some murals in the TLC and some at West Shore , were going to have our henna tattoo fundraiser so i’m just really excited to do all of that.”

The students are  excited to be a part of this club that gives back to their community.  

“I like it because it’s a good way for the art students to express themselves and practice art around the school and in the community,” senior Julia Bolcer said. 

Many students got involved in this club to share their passion for art and better themselves as an artist. It’s also a safe place to share ideas with each other and interact. 

“I enjoy doing art in school and interacting with other people,” senior Katrina Jakab said. 

The NAHS gifts members with the ability to have a setting where students can come and assist their community. The club is very united.

“Everyone in the club has a passion for art and I think we all just like to do things for the school and for ourselves to participate in the art culture here at Law,” junior Rachna Vipparla said.

Students are glad to have the NAHS so they can express their creative outlet.

The National Art Education Association (NAEA)  began the NAHS in 1978 to inspire and recognize students who had the skill and interest in the visual arts.  The NAHS aspire to assist its members in attaining the highest standards in art scholarship, character and service . 

Murphy has been advisor of this club for four years. Since NAHS is an honor society, students have to apply, show previous artwork, and write an essay to join. 

“I think it’s a great organization for artist in this school to come together and talk about art and participate,” Murphy said.

By Taylor Firla – Staff Reporter

With the new school year a month in, Jonathan Law’s Key Club has started and they seem to be excited for what the new year has to come. 

Key Club is a great way for students to branch out in Milford and help their community. For those who are also looking to graduate with distinction, joining the Key Club is an easy way to fill up volunteer hours.

“I expect them to do their best, I expect them to have fun, I expect them to work hard,” Key Club Director Mr. Boynton said. “Key Club is a volunteer organization, we have a lot of people in the community and school that are counting on us and I have no doubt that they will continue having success in making Jonathan Law proud.” 

Key Club officers have lofty goals for this year. Junior Key Club President Angel Santiago backs up Boynton’s point when talking about their goals they set for this year. 

“Our goals for this year would be to increase attendance as much as we possibly can and my other goal would be to get as many freshmen interested in leadership positions as possible and increasing the amount of hours each person does in Key Club,” Santiago said. 

Santiago said that students join the club for many reason.

“We help the community, joining looks good on college applications, and it helps you get into the National Honor Society,” Junior Key Club Treasurer  Noah Forsythe said. 

Key Club really seems to have many positive aspects. Volunteering is one of their biggest that they are known for. 

“Well we volunteer so helping out the community is our biggest positive,” Junior Key Club Vice President Jenna Bagdasarian said. 

Key Club members have their expectations set high for this year and hope to make an impact in their town and school communities. But there are steps to be taken to reach those expectations. 

“We should try to have more fundraising for the club and more funding to go towards the club would help us out a lot,” Sophomore Key Club Secretary Diya Daruka said. “More funding will make the school better.”

By Eliana Chico – Staff Reporter

Jonathan Law High School will be hosting a Financial Planning Night in partnership with Barden Presentations on November 6.

The purpose of the Financial Planning Night is to educate all Milford students in high school (regardless of their grade) about the financial process – planning on how to manage the financial aspect of their lives, get prepared for college, learn about financial aid, use their resources, and so on in the time frame provided. 

The event will take place in the senior cafeteria at 6 p.m. and will end at 7:30 p.m, and both students and parents are welcome to attend and they are encouraged to ask questions.

For more information, parents and students may check their emails for a link about the event and how to sign up for it, or simply review the Jonathan Law page on milforded.org and click on the counselling section. If students and/or parents/guardians are not able to attend, another Financial Planning Night will be held in the spring.

“Financial planning as a whole is actually best to start sooner rather than later,” said College and Career counselor Ms. Sylvia, “I think it would be great if we had that excitement around financial planning so that students have a better handle on their plans for the future. This will make the process a lot smoother around graduation time and reassure students that they have more options and can feel a lot more settled and less stressed.”

Law students also had their own thoughts on the matter of Financial Planning Night.

“I think this will really benefit us in the future. I can definitely learn more about financial planning because it isn’t talked about much in this school,” junior Lexi Rios said. “I’m glad there are resources like these for us to take action on.”

Other Law students also had their own input. 

“There is definitely a lack of awareness about financial planning,” said Law junior Madison Lusignan. “This can definitely help us out in the long run. For sure, we’ll have a better handle on the financial aspect of our future. This can definitely help with any doubts, anxieties and worries in college and keep us prepared.”

Younger Law students are also engaged in the matter.

“This is for sure a resource that all of us in Law should take advantage of,” said sophomore Dominic Baldino. “I feel that we can all definitely learn a lot from Financial Planning Night.”

By Madison Lusignan – Staff Reporter

Jonathan Law High School is coming out with its own Student Congress.

The Student Congress was created to create a forum that allows for more student voices to be heard and for more student ownership of Jonathan Law to be taken. 

”I just want students to have a chance to get their voice heard, because I know there’s only so many members on the student council, and I have all the time in class to hear all the great ideas kids have about stuff,” Student Congress advisor Mr. Zuraw said. ”So I just wanted to give them a formal way to share their ideas and discuss them.”

The Student Congress will allow students to formally propose research and debate ideas they have about current issues or concerns at Law and come up with ideas about how to help fix them. 

Zuraw, who came up with the idea, has high hopes for the Congress, as does Law principal Mr. Thompson.

”I thought it was a wonderful idea, especially since it’s modeled after a social civil model that we use in our own government state and local and of course federal,” said Thompson. “And I think anytime you can have more student voice, the better, so the more voices and input from students the better our school will be so I thought it was a wonderful idea.”

Senior Ru Akhtar is excited to running for the Student Congress at Law and plans on helping out the community.

“I feel like it would be cool to have a voice and be apart of a congress because I think it’s an interesting part of the government, so I think it’s kinda cool that we’re gonna have it here,” Akhtar said.

Junior Shakiah Perry has high hopes for the election and is filled with bright ideas for Law.

“I wanted to run for student congress because I want to make an impact on my class, and I want to have everybody’s ideas heard and I feel like I can really bring that out by being an ambassador,” said Perry, who is running in the election.

Sophomore Aurora Rutkowski, who was one of the first few to turn in their applications for her class, is diving right into this new governmental Congress.  

“Even though I didn’t really think much of it at first and then I had my doubts about it, it still intrigued me. I just want to make Law a better place mainly mostly because of the students,” Rutkowsi said.

By Tyanna Xavier – Staff Reporter 

On September 19, Jonathan Law Choir visited The University of Connecticut to attend the UConn Young Conductor Symposium.

The UConn Young Conductor Symposium is an annual event that happens once a year for choir students in high school to educate them on choral leadership and skills that will help you later on in your choir.  Although, choir is known for doing substantial performances small or big, at UConn, they learn will singing techniques on how to work on their vocal skills when performing. 

“This year was a memorable experience and had gotten more participation, the students learned how a professional college ensemble sounds like and were able to take away a lot of important information and apply it to our own ensemble,” choir instructor Mrs. Jones said.

The Jonathan Law choir has made a lot of improvement in there way of teaching and learning so everyone can cope in order for a good performance. Choir members said that they have never seen a group as committed as this one.

“The most important part about choir when singing is keeping everyone on the same page. By learning how to conduct each other it will make choir more on track when performing and giving our best performance,” senior Advanced Vocal Ensemble member Justin Amaro said.   

With the help of the music conductors and Jones learning from them as well, the choir will have more advantages when performing. 

“At UConn there were conductors there who were very experienced who taught us more techniques we can do with our voices, including breathing and coming on time with our queues,” senior Advanced Vocal Ensemble member Rani Roderick said.

Joshua East, who is a doctorate student at UConn and a part of the Connecticut ACDA, and Dr. Jamie Spillane, a Director of Choral Studies at UConn and a conductor for the CMEA regionals festival, presented on the trip the choir attended.

“I had a great experience getting to learn from Joshua East and Dr. Jamie Spillane because they are very well known at UConn,” junior Advanced Vocal Ensemble member Joey Soto said. “I’m glad Jonathan Law had the opportunity to have this experience because it will help us out a lot for the CMEA regionals festival.”

These techniques help the choir for Lake Compounce and other trips they take throughout the year, where they will compete against other schools. The Law choir has a reputation of bringing home a trophy from these competitions, and they hope to continue that tradition.

“We learned to express more when singing to bring out the emotion when performing and we also learned how to properly drop our jaws when singing for more diction,” junior Concert Choir member John Finn said. 

When singing, it is important for choir members to show emotion. Therefore, if the choir shows emotion when performing, the audience will feel it, too. 

By Sydney Simpson – Staff Reporter

Sophomore Class President Eva Carroll has organized a Fright Haven fundraiser for the Class of 2022, which began on September 24. 

For the general public, tickets to the Fright Haven venue cost $30. However, for students at Jonathan Law High School, tickets will be offered at a price of $20, providing them with a $10 discount. 

“I’m very confident that this idea is going to pay off,” Carroll said. “Fright Haven is an entertaining and social thing, so people will buy tickets in groups which will result in a greater profit for our school.”

For each ticket sold, the sophomore class will receive $5 in profit, while Fright Haven takes the remaining $15. 

The money is set to go towards the Class of 2022’s Ring Banquet, to help make prices lower for students to attend. 

“They have a lot of activities there and from what I understand it’s supposed to be a real top notch production,” said Sophomore Class Advisor Mr. Boynton. “I’m hoping that we can get the interest of our students here and their families, and if we do, then it will be successful.”

Fright Haven has recently moved from a small venue in Milford over to a larger one in Stratford, located on 411 Barnum Avenue Cutoff, in Stratford, CT. 

“Everyone in our grade loves Fright Haven, lots of people that I know go every year at least once,” Sophomore Class Vice President Hailey Boyle said. “That’s how I’m confident that this will be a really relevant and successful fundraiser for our class.”

When people buy a ticket to Fright Haven, they can be involved in something fun while helping out the sophomore class. This is a timely and interesting fundraiser, which makes it stand out from others. 

“I hope it inspires other classes to think about doing something more than just shake the can at stop and shop,” Jonathan Law Principal Mr. Thompson said. “Maybe more interactive fundraisers like this can make more money for classes, which is what it’s all about.”

Traditional fundraisers such as shake the can do make money, but people don’t get anything in return. That is what makes this fundraiser unique, people can purchase a ticket for something fun and entertaining while still supporting the sophomore class. 

This idea was carried out through Boynton, who was originally approached with it by Carroll and Jonathan Law math teacher Ms. Loch. They got the idea at the Oyster Festival over the summer, when a representative from Fright Haven proposed the fundraiser idea to the Law Volleyball tent. 

The volleyball team, being in the midst of fundraisers already, didn’t need it, so Carroll took it upon herself to propose the idea to Boynton, who called Fright Haven to get it set up. The company then sent tickets to the school featuring the Jonathan Law logo for the sophomore class officers to begin selling. 

“It’s something for people to do to get pumped up for Halloween,” said sophomore Cydney Galasso. “I think it’s a very creative idea.”

As of now, there is no set end date for the fundraiser. Tickets will be sold for as long as Fright Haven is open this year. 

By Sadie Willett – Staff Reporter

The Sophomore Class President and Vice President are working together this year to fundraise for the Sophomore Class Ring Dance. 

Sophomore Class President Eva Carroll and Sophomore Class Vice President Hailey Boyle are working alongside this year in order to fundraise for the class dance. 

The first fundraiser is selling discounted tickets for Fright Haven. Fright Haven is a haunted house located in Stratford that becomes popular throughout the Halloween season. 

The idea for the fundraiser was proposed and executed by Carroll and is being advertised by the entire sophomore class office. 

Tickets for the fundraiser are $20 and 25 percent of the profit will go towards the sophomore class.

Tickets are primarily being sold during lunch waves. However, if students are interested in purchasing a ticket, they may also buy one from any of the class officers if they see them around the school.

The fundraisers are not stopping there. Other ideas in order to benefit the Class Ring Dance are in the works. 

Several thoughts have been brainstormed.

A Chipotle fundraiser, where students can go to Chipotle to dine for dinner has been suggested by Carroll. A partial amount of proceeds will go towards the dance.

The fundraiser is not yet confirmed, however, Sophomore Class Advisor Mr. Boynton has stated that it is highly probable. 

Boynton has also stated that the fundraisers will have a very successful outcome. 

“I really hope they do turn out to be successful,” Boynton said. “My officers have some great ideas, we just need to sit down and work out some of the details.”

Costco is also a possibility for a future fundraiser. 

Customers of Costco would be given a specific span of hours to purchase their groceries. A percentage of profits made would benefit the dance.

Carroll believes these fundraisers are very likely to turn out in our favor.

“The Costco fundraiser I feel will be more successful because everyone needs groceries whereas Fright Haven, not everyone wants to go,” Carroll said. “But overall, we have seen good profit from the Fright Haven one and we plan to see more.” 

Boyle also has optimistic opinions on the year ahead. 

“I do think it will be successful because the fundraisers that we do we make sure are at places that people our age like to go to, like Fright Haven during the fall and Chipotle for dinner,” Boyle said. 

Both the Class President and Vice President as well as the Class Advisor are looking forward to collaborating with each other this year.

“I’m just going to support her,” Boyle said. “Whatever she wants to do I will help her do and I will work with her and not against her.”

Carroll looks forward to working with Boyle to assure a succeeding year. 

“She’s a close friend of mine,” Carroll said. “We have collaborated over things in the past in not only school, but socially as well.”

Members of the sophomore class are optimistic for the year’s fundraisers as well.

“It opens up new opportunities for our grade to either expand for certain casual events we have during the school year,” sophomore Solomon Mercado said.

By Eva Carroll – Staff Reporter

Freshman officer elections will be held at Jonathan Law in the Newsroom on October 10-11. 

Each candidate must complete a petition form to be put on the ballot. One must specify their desired position, collect 25 signatures from other students in their class, and have a completed and signed student evaluation from their teachers. 

“The old days of running for office and having it be a popularity contest or a joke, are over,” Jonathan Law Principal Mr. Thompson said. “There is an expectation that you are going to take it seriously, and you are going to make a difference.”

Before elections, students are expected to have prepared a speech to address their classmates. 

These speeches will be addressed on October 10 on Eagle Eye News. Candidates will read their speeches in order by positional rank, starting from most to least important positions. 

“When you are preparing a speech to introduce yourself to your classmates, be direct, be honest, and make it clear what it is you want to do for them,” Freshman Class Advisor Mr. Kravecs said. 

On October 11, Freshmen will cast their votes appointing their desired candidates during advisories. 

Advisors will project all the candidates’ names and aside, their corresponding numbers. Afterward, students will be handed a Scantron ballot and they will bubble-in the boxes next to their candidates’ number. 

Once the Scantrons are completed, advisors will collect the ballots and give them to Mr. Boynton, the sophomore class advisor. Boynton counts the votes per candidate, and whichever candidate has the majority vote, is appointed for their position.

“We need candidates that will be caring about their school, caring about the issues in school and able to relate to their fellow students,” Boynton said.

Depending on the year, officers will be announced on the overhead speaker the day votes are casted or a day soon following. 

There are six available positions in class office: President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, and two Senators. 

Class officers are responsible for establishing fundraisers, collecting class dues, accommodating complaints or suggestions laid out by peers, and organizing, as well as carrying out class events. 

“I want to run for class office because I have always been a good leader and I feel that class office is an opportunity to demonstrate these skills,” Lia Schulte, a freshman presidential candidate, said.

Students that are looking to run for office must be honorable, motivated and educated citizens, that genuinely want to benefit their class. 

“I definitely learned a lot about managing responsibilities, and had a great opportunity to connect with my classmates,” Senior Class President Tess Rosato said. 

By Amelia Mower – Staff Reporter

Jonathan Law High School Senior Arunika Shee has been named a 2020 National Merit Commended Scholar.

The National Merit Scholarship Program is an academic-based competition based on PSAT scores in the United States. Out of approximately 1.6 million entries, the top 50,000 students qualify for recognition as a National Merit Scholar.

“I don’t feel any different, but seeing it on paper and hearing it in person really made it sink in,” said Shee. “It’s really rewarding to see hard work pay off.”

In September, 34,000 of these students, including Shee, were selected to be National Merit Commended Scholars. With this status, students are nationally recognized and can qualify for special scholarships from certain businesses and corporations. 

“Not many students from Law have achieved this before,” Law Guidance Counselor Ms. Raymo said. 

The PSAT is broken down into mathematics, reading, and writing sections. Reading and writing scores are combined with math scores to earn a score out of 1600 possible points. 

Shee believes skills acquired in taking classes such as AP Language and Composition helped her on the exam. 

“We practiced close reading and inferencing,” English teacher Ms. Hanson said. “Analyzing text is important.”

Mathematics skills are built upon during high school from basic algebra to advanced manipulation of more complex equations. On the PSAT, there are calculator and non-calculator sections which challenge the students taking it. 

“Algebra II is more of an integrating the questions in the curriculum into the tests and do-nows,” said math teacher Mr. Ruzbarsky. 

Jonathan Law Principal Mr. Thompson is thrilled with all of the hard work and dedication students have been putting in over the past nine years he has been the Principal.

“I am so proud of Arunika because she really embodies everything about what we want for a Law student,” Thompson said. “She makes the most of her academic and high school experience.”

Shee plans on furthering her education with a getting a degree in Biomedical Engineering or Molecular Biology and attending medical school. 

“I’m really interested in scientific research and the creation of medical devices,” said Shee. “I would love to help solve medical problems in the future.”

By Adarsh Senthilnathan – Staff Reporter 

Recent Jonathan Law graduates are handling the start of their freshman year at college with ease due to the amazing experience they had at Law and the level of teaching they received from Law’s amazing teachers. 

Most Jonathan Law graduates are prepared for the rigorous course load that will be put on them because of the AP classes offered at Law. 

Nick Hanna, a freshman at the University of Michigan, is excited for what the future holds for him in Michigan. 

“The course load isn’t as bad as you’d expect but it really varies by class,” Hanna said. “For example, my computer science class keeps me up at night but the only time I think about my astronomy class is when I’m in lecture.” 

Hanna said that the course load is manageable with time-management skills, which are key to success. 

Many recent Law graduates are attending the University of Connecticut and they really love everything that they are doing there, academically and socially. 

Dan Wasserman, a UConn freshman, is studying business and is excited to become a businessman when he graduates college.

“I’m studying business at UConn,” said Wasserman. “The business classes I took at Law helped me gain basic knowledge of business, improved my ability to plan and organize, and overall taught me to think like a businessman.” 

Many students have also joined the numerous clubs and activities offered at their colleges. 

Andrew Ancheta, a freshman at UConn, has broadened his sphere of experiences by joining clubs. 

“At UConn, the only club that I joined, for now, is the Video Game Club,” Ancheta said. “In terms of how it has changed me, I believe that it helped me to become more social and interactive, especially with people close to or like me.” 

Throughout high school, Ancheta was very shy and nervous while meeting new classmates, teachers, etc. 

Ancheta said that although he is still shy and nervous, he would say that the friends he made in the video game club helped him break out of his shell even more, to become more comfortable and confident in who he is and who he wants to be.

Many of Law’s recent graduates are also playing sports at their current universities.

For example, Ethan Saley, last year’s captain of the Law football team, is playing football at Southern Connecticut State University. 

Saley said that SCSU football is very different from high school football. 

“College football is a lot different from high school ball because everything is taken very seriously, since I’ve been here I have learned that the game is a lot more mental than I thought,” said Saley. “What I mean by this is that there are so many things that you have to have going on in your head so you know the right moves to make and what to do before and during the play. 

Additionally, Saley said that college football is way more time consuming. He is at football for a total of 7-8 hours of the day in college compared to high school, where he was only there for 3-4 hours at most. 

On top of this, he said that the coaches there are a lot more strict in the rules that they have on and off the field. Saley said that if someone disobeys these rules, they could have some serious consequences.

Another recent Law graduate, Ronan O’Reilly, interested in history is attending the University of Southern Maine. 

O’Reilly likes to explore and take unique classes and the classes he took at Law have tremendously influenced his college experience. 

“My favorite thing at USM is probably the ability to take different and unique classes like Viking Age Iceland as well as living in a new place with new experiences,” O’Reilly said. “Law helped influence my college experience with classes like AP European History and AP U.S. History that helped prepare me for college type work.”

The college atmosphere is also very different than the atmosphere at Law because there are so many more people.  

Hanna who has attended parties and football games at the University of Michigan gives a description of the college atmosphere. 

“Well the parties and football games at Umich are bonkers,” said Hanna. It’s pretty common to see like 200 students at the tailgates before the games and the streets of Ann Arbor turn maize on game day.”

When in college, students have many opportunities to participate in adventurous and extreme activities. 

For example, Wasserman has recently had the opportunity to go parachuting with the Connecticut Parachutists. 

“I went skydiving for the feeling of excitement and thrill and I knew this was a once in a lifetime opportunity,” Wasserman said. “This was one of the most fun experiences I’ve ever had and the view was amazing.” 

By Alexis Rios – Staff Reporter

Science Club is a STEM-based club at Jonathan Law where students participate in a wide range of activities in the STEM field.

This club allows students to compete in events to gain and practice skills they already have to obtain new opportunities.  “

The goal is to get more kids interested in science and to get more kids competing, and hopefully place in different events,” Science Club advisor Ms.Turcotte said. 

The club will bring two teams of 15 club members on each to their Olympiads this year. Their Olympiads will be at Yale, UConn and Brown. 

Competing in the Olympiads at these universities allows students to catch a glimpse of different college campuses.

“I’m really looking forward to all of us collaborating together and working towards making this a great year for everyone,” Science Club president Arunika Shee said.  “Hopefully we can win some medals at the Olympics this year.”

Because most of the Olympiad students will compete, they will have to be prepared with research. These events include building events, biology events, engineering events, and more. 

“I love the knowledge and experience that I gain from this club,” junior Secretary Meghana Cheela said. “I like working with others who are just as dedicated and interested with science ̈.

This year, the Science Club will be doing fundraising at Chipotle and at a Shake the Can event. 

“This year I’m looking forward to the diverse topics and events to help me with my dream of making a career in medicine,̈  junior member Sanskar Shaw said. ¨I like to be creative and this club allows me to be.”

The Science Club uses buses as a transportation to get to each Olympiad. Brown University is an overnight trip meaning that students will stay for both days.  

The Club officers choose partners for the Olympiad based on the events, similar interests, and their past experiences. 

“The best part of being in the club is being able to explore my interests in the science field,¨ junior Rachna Vipparla said. ¨It will help me a lot with figuring out what I want to do in the future. ̈   

The club is supposed to give students with a passion for science an opportunity in the STEM field.

Science Club allows students to gain experience and expand their learning from hands on activities. The students can then compete with their research and projects if they choose to do so.

By Maddie Papcun – Staff Reporter

The Environmental Club at Jonathan Law is back and better than ever, working to raise awareness on the current pressing environmental issues.

After a long hiatus, the small club was reintroduced last year by students who have since graduated from Law: Ming-May Hu and Krutikka Gopal. 

“I advised an Environmental Club over 10 years ago, it ran for a few years, and then it stopped,” club advisor Ms. Bouchard said. “Basically Ming-May and Krutikka approached (history teacher and co-advisor) Miss Mannion about starting a club, so I offered to advise it as well.”

Many of the people involved in the Jonathan Law environmental club are extremely dedicated to stopping climate change and reducing environmental impacts. 

“I’m very passionate about the work that scientists and environmentalists are doing currently to prevent the continuation of global warming,” club advisor Miss Mannion said. “I just wanted to help out.”

Previously, the club has created a pollinator garden surrounding the flagpole in front of the school, and run many local clean-ups. They hope to continue with projects such as these in the current school year. 

“This year we’ve been tossing around the idea of an environmental fair for earth day, where we educate people on environmental friendliness and what climate change actually is,” senior co-president Sam Papcun said. 

Overall, the Environmental Club has big plans for the year. They constantly discuss current movements such as climate strikes, and what the school can do locally to help the environment. 

“During meetings we will cover anything from current events to current projects we are working on,” senior co-president Caroline Chesson said. “Some days we go outside to maintain our garden as well.” 

The club highly encourages underclassmen to join,especially if they want to have an impact on the local community. Meetings are right after school on Tuesdays in Bouchard’s room. 

“Come to a meeting, if you’re interested. It’s worth a shot,” Papcun said. 

A small group of underclassmen are already involved in the Environmental Club. These younger members are just as passionate as their older counterparts. 

“I want to be able to make a difference—however small—within our community,” sophomore club member Melanie Filippone said. “This is happening now. Although things are bad, we can still save the earth by raising awareness and putting in the effort.”

Largely, the Environmental Club advisors, presidents, and members alike are fighting to have a lasting impact. 

“I want to see students who are in the club enjoy what they learn, incorporating it into the practices they do and the decisions they make,” Bouchard said. “I believe it’s their generation that’s  going to help fix the messes we’ve all created.”

By Lucas Greifzu – Editorial Editor

The Backyard Wrestling Organization, or BWO, comes together on the weekends to put on a show for its fans not only on YouTube and Instagram, but throughout Milford as well.

The BWO puts on events for its fans on a regular basis, these events normally occur on Saturdays. The BWO has also been putting on these events since the middle of July of 2018. 

“What makes me want to keep doing it a year later is that I have a lot of fun doing it with my friends,” said BWO wrestler and part-owner Angel Santiago. “Also, I feel that we’ve gained enough of an audience now where, a lot of people are starting to watch our content, so it’s important to me to service the people who are actually watching it.”

The BWO has an event this Saturday starting at 6 p.m. The details for this event are on their Instagram. They also have a busy schedule of events lined up on the horizon for their audience to enjoy. 

̈ ̈Working with the BWO is often times the highlight of my day because of the friends I get to work with and the crazy stuff we do,” said BWO co-founder, part-owner, and wrestler Vaughn Weston.

The BWO is also a place for friends to gather and hang out with each other, while being able to enjoy a common interest. 

̈The BWO to me is a way to hang out with friends and do something unique while doing that,” said BWO wrestler Brian Zirkel. ¨I see and talk to people there I never would have if I hadn’t joined and have met new friends in it too.”

People from all parts of Jonathan Law, as well as Milford, join the BWO for many different reasons.

¨I joined the BWO because it looked like a nice group of people and a fun thing to do,” said new BWO member Dan Folloni. ̈Also some people were on the tennis team with me.”

The BWO started off as a small group of friends in a basement, but it has grown substantially since then.

¨I am very proud of what I’ve been able to do with 6 friends in a basement, because honestly I never thought that this would turn into such a big thing, but now we ́re getting 300-400 views on a YouTube video and one of our videos is already almost at 1,000 ,” said Santiago. ̈ ̈Obviously everyone around the school knows what it is, so I ́m very proud of what we’ve been able to do with it.”