Author: Ivy Miller

Finals Anxieties? Here’s how to cope…

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by Liz Mantush ’25

With finals week just around the corner, many students may be stressing over how to prepare themselves. For many Wyoming Seminary students, especially underclassmen, this is their first real experience with cumulative finals, and the stress that they may experience is real.

Finals week will consist of at most two-three finals a day, with extended bells meant for term-cumulative exams.  The exam slots will be equivalent to a long bell, giving each student enough time to complete their tests. Teachers do their best to prepare students for their tests, however the unaccounted for emotional toll it takes on students is sometimes harder than the test.

For one, taking time for yourself is the best way to ease the stress. Watching comforting movies, playing your favorite music, and spending time with people who lift you up are ways to distract yourself from any anxieties you may have. There are many quiet spaces available on campus like the Wellness Center, SLRC, and the library, where students can study, nap, and relax before and after their exams.

Our school counselor Breanne Finagen would like to remind students of some ways to prevent burnout during finals season. She states that the best way to keep yourself above water is, “Focusing on caring for yourself and realizing it’s not the end of the world.” She suggests visiting the Wellness Center when feeling stressed as well as getting a good night’s sleep, warning that “You’re not going to be able to retain the information when you’re pulling an all-nighter.”

However, when it comes time to study, SEM’s learning support official, Kristen Coffay suggests “knowing your exam schedules and creating a study plan” in order to optimize your study time. Structure in the time leading up to your exam and keeping yourself on track are going to help prepare you to your fullest ability.

Conferencing with your teachers, seeking help in the many academic support we have, including the Math, Writing, and Language Centers when needed, and maybe even a peer tutor are all great ways to get in the right direction for your tests. Exams can be daunting, but it’s important to get help where you need it, so you can end the term on a good note. Many students struggle to ask for help, but being direct with your teachers is the best way to excel in your courses. Here is a link to the school’s learning support resources.

What Are You Listening To?

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By Erica Zhu ’23

As the 2022-2023 year comes to a close, an important question remains: what are the cheerful dwellers of Wyoming Seminary listening to? Opinator interviewed both the students and faculty on Sprague Avenue to uncover their music tastes:

Christian DeBellis ‘24: Wildflower Wildfire – Lana Del Rey

Ari Froehlich ‘24: California Dreamin’ – The Mamas and The Papas

Mr. Logan Chace: “Sorry, too busy.” & the new album by The National

Andrew Tulo ‘24: All For You – Amaria and Destin Conrad

Peyton Popple ’23: “Sound of Dino crying.”

Kate Soreth ’20: I bet on Losing Dogs – Mitski 

Moira Poepperling ’25: Never Gonna Give You Up – Rick Roll

Rita Kupstas ’23: “Yes.” 

Ms. Alexa Eidam: It Ain’t Over ‘Till It’s Over – Lenny Kravitz 

Xavier Tereska ’27: Becoming the Last Names – Will Wood 

Ben Carron ’23: “The Sweet sound of bus on pavement.”

Drew Mauriello ’23: “The lacrosse game and a Joji leak.” 

Ms. Rachel Bartron: Thank God For You – Kane Brown and his Wife: “Music changes the atmosphere all the time.”

Paul Stevenson ’24: I Fought the Law – Bill Jean and Shut Up and Drive – Rihanna 

Olivia Sekel ‘24: Illicit Affairs – Taylor Swift

Nicholas Shin ’23: Despacito – Luis Fonsi and Stay – Justin Beiber 

Molly Kopetchny ’24: Crosby Stills, Nash, Stevie Nicks, and Joe Cocker

Tommy Majkowski ’25: “Classical Hip Hop.” 

Alex Smulowitz(as Elvis) ‘25: “My own music of course.”

Mrs. Ellen Sherry: The Carpenters and other 70s music!

Ainsley Eidam ’23: Name of The Game – ABBA

Jacob Hamilton Nivert ’25: Me! – Taylor Swift x Brendon Urie and Hamilton Soundtrack

Helena Prusak ’23: “Beyonce.” 

Leaf Hancuff ’23: You Ain’t Nothin but a Hound Dog in French

Mr. Floyd Bussie: Losing my Religion in French

Arthur Wang ’26: Raincoat – Kieron Lee and Chloe Ho

McKayla Williams ’24: Angelina – Lizzie McAlpine

Lily Roberti ’24: Mine – Taylor Swift

Bao “Bow Toza” To ’26: It Started to Rain – Shook

Xavier Flory ’24: “Tyler the Creator.” 

Francesca Ramos ’23: “N-nothing?”

Gabe Rampp ’23: Dear Mr. Fantasy – Traffic 

Ethan Burns ’27: “I’m listening to Freaks by Surf Curse.”

Brad McGinty ’25: Through The Fire and The Flames

Ian Poole ’22: “A lot of Billy Joel!”

Paige Kenewell ’24: Audiobook of Project Hail Mary 

David Guetz ’24: Movies – Andromeda

Muriel Shaefer ’23: Don’t Stop The Music – Jaimie Cullum

Erica Zhu ‘23: Killshot(Slowed + Reverb) – Magdalena Bay

Sem students have good musical taste…or do they? As the summer rolls in, check out some of these hot songs and artists.

Wyoming Seminary’s Annual Earth Week

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By Trinity Kong ’24

Wyoming Seminary’s Environmental Club held yet another Earth Week beginning Monday, April 17th until Earth Day, Saturday, April 22. Working hard throughout the winter and spring terms, the members of the Environmental Club hosted a variety of exciting activities and events during the week. Their goal was to promote sustainability and educate on environmental issues while encouraging all of Wyoming Seminary to join their efforts and do their part to combat climate change.

Starting off the week with Meatless Monday and poster-making, the Environmental Club, with the help of Metz Food Service, provided plant-based lunch options and held a poster-making party after classes. Eating plant-based is beneficial for the planet as it can severely decrease the number of greenhouse gases produced and the amount of habitat and biodiversity loss. The poster-making party allowed members of the Sem community to voice their concerns about climate change in writing, which would then be posted on the gates around campus to stimulate the local community to think about these issues.

On Tuesday, the Environmental Club distributed wildflower seeds native to the area to promote planting flowers that are native to the area but will also increase the area’s biodiversity.

Next up, on Wednesday, an Educational Walk for Water was led by Michele Schasberger to Toby’s Creek. Students who attended were taught about the importance of walk quality and shown how to test certain aspects of water quality.

Members of the Environmental Club organized a clothing donation and a trip to the local Salvation Army for Thursday of Earth Week. Buying clothes secondhand is very beneficial for the environment because making new clothes requires large amounts of water, pollutes water sources, and releases large quantities of greenhouse gases.

The club ended the school week with a dress-down day and a day of no plastic use. The dress-down day proceeds went towards Plastic Oceans International, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to end plastic pollution and promote sustainable living. And in conjunction with Metz Food Service and Caribou Coffee, the Environmental Club encouraged all of Sem to stop using plastic just for one day, offering incentives such as one dollar off of a purchase at Caribou Coffee for bringing a reusable cup. Plastic pollution is detrimental to the environment, the animals around us, and even human beings.

Finally, on Saturday, the club spent Earth Day with a Pollinator Garden Activity: planting succulents in pots reused from past ceramics classes. Along with the activity, a beekeeper came to speak to attendees about the importance of pollinators to the environment.

Taking all the amazing activities and initiatives into account, Earth Week 2023 was a success, and Environmental Club will continue to work to improve on Wyoming Seminary’s actions to combat climate change!