Spokesman Volume 59 Issue 2

Advice Column
Jamie Reilly, XI
ADVICE COLUMNIST
J amboris, how do I cook bolognese properly?
A person of culture, I see. Not many have the aptitude
to take on such a challenging dish. However, with
my assistance, you will be able to whip up a plate of
bolognese that even Chef Brian won’t be able to replicate.
First, add your gluten and dairy free water into a pot
and set it to a boil. Whilst you wait, add tomato sauce,
a meat of your choice (or veggies for my vegetarians!
This is for you, Dr. Kideckel!), and ketchup into a
bowl and stir until mixed. Transfer your sauce to a pan
and put it on the stove at medium heat for about five
minutes, ensuring that you stir sufficiently throughout.
After five minutes, remove the sauce from the heat and
immediately add two pounds of Lays Classic Potato
chips (this gives it a nice crunch). At this time, your
water should be done boiling. Add your pasta of choice
to the boiling water and stir for about seven minutes.
Strain the pasta and add it to your sauce. Mix the pasta
and sauce together and enjoy!
Jamboris, how do I beat my friends at chess?
Chess, eh? Not an easy sport to master. It will take
blood, sweat, and tears to demolish your opponents.
However, with these simple steps, you will be able to
defeat anyone who might cross your path. In starting your
chess journey, try playing people with a lower skill level.
For example, juniors Justin Elkin or Hutch Henderson
would be a good choice for your first match. After you
play your first couple of matches, analyze your moves.
Is there anything you might have missed, anything you
did well? Look up chess openings and study different
variations. After you have mastered your openings, you
can start to challenge more difficult opponents. Continue
to analyze your games and after thousands of hours of
practice, you may be able to take down your friends and
be well on your journey to becoming a grandmaster!
Jamboris, is block coding acceptable for Advanced
Placement Computer Science Principles?
Absolutely… Not! Keep your blocks in Minecraft, my
friend! In an AP level course, excellence is expected
from every student who enrolls. For a computer science
class, the bare minimum is that you learn to properly
code. Block coding should be considered cheating, as
you are not learning the skills to code. You will be unable
to use the information you learn in the real world. r
(Photo/Beth He ‘26)
SPOKESFUN
Teacher of the Month:
Gwen Shockey
Gloria Wang, XI
PRINT FEATURES EDITOR
G wen Shockey is one of the faculty members
who joined the PDS community in June, 2021.
Prior to that, she taught college art classes at
Pratt Institute for five years. She graduated from
PDS in 2006 and studied fine arts at Connecticut
College. Ms. Shockey is a member of the visual
arts department and the director of the Anne Reid
‘72 Art Gallery. “I really love the community here
at PDS,’’ she said. “It’s really cool to come back to
see how much PDS has changed and grown since I
graduated. The students at PDS that I worked with
are a group of very bright and motivated people.
I am constantly impressed at the level of artwork
that they exemplified.”
Ms. Shockey shows her classes a lot of artwork
from contemporary artists who have diverse
backgrounds and identities to ensure that all
of her students can identify with the artists. To
make her class more engaging and entertaining,
Ms. Shockey changes her curriculum during the
summer, focusing on a different theme in art history
or the contemporary art world every year. The broad
range of artworks that she shows to her students
allows them to gain a diverse perspective on all
of the possibilities that art can have. Senior Claire
Meehan commented that Ms. Shockey “has created
a very comfortable and welcoming environment
for students to be able to fully express themselves
in a safe space.”
Ms. Shockey believes that art is a very important
aspect of students’ learning experience, and that
“taking art classes can help students improve
in every different way.” She allows all of her
students demonstrate creativity in her class by
giving open-ended assignments and having private
conversations with them to learn their authentic
voice. Senior Elizabeth Sun, who is currently
taking Ms. Shockey’s Advanced Fine Art class,
shared that “Ms. Shockey is a wonderful teacher.
I really love how her class is always chill and
engaging.”
“[She] ‘has created a
very comfortable and
welcoming environment
for students to be able to
fully express themselves
in a safe space.’”
Other than teaching Intro to Fine Art and
Advanced Fine art, Ms. Shockey is also an active
member in the Upper School’s extracurricular and
club activities. She is the faculty advisor of the
Gallery club, which hosts art gallery receptions
for visiting artists at PDS. As a faculty advisor,
her primary responsibilities are organizing events
and exhibitions for the Anne Reid ‘72 Gallery and
events like the open mic event on February 8. For
the most recent exhibition, An Explorer, A Tracer of
Lost Tribes, A Seeker of Clues to Feelings, Junior
Ashlyn Du mentioned that “it is really cool for
our gallery to be featuring artists from outside of
our school. It allows us to gain experiences and
exposure to the outside world of art.” r
11
Teacher of the Month:
Leila Estes
Addison Figel, X
PRINT STAFF WRITER
U pper School English teacher Leila Estes is
having a great month. In addition to winning the
“Rookie of the Year” award at the Teachers Award
Ceremony presented by Student Council, Dr. Estes is
also one of the Spokesman’s teachers of the month!
The always engaging and funny fashion icon from
New York City, Dr. Estes is adored by everyone she
encounters. Advisee and current student of Dr. Estes,
freshman Amber Pancholi talked about Dr. Estes’s
ways of teaching: “English class is very entertaining,
and Dr. Estes makes sure that everyone participates.
I love how she grades different activities very
uniquely from other teachers in order to still get the
lesson across but in a particular way.” Explaining
Dr. Estes’s “unique” teaching, Pancholi shared, “Dr.
Estes was a film major [in college?], so I love how
she incorporates the study of film. For example,
she incorporates the study of film to practice close
reading, and it is really fun. We did a close reading
of The Matrix, so we watched The Matrix in
class, and then we all had to choose an individual
scene and do a close reading assignment on that.”
In addition to being a great teacher, Dr. Estes is
also a terrific advisor. One of Dr. Estes’s sophomore
advisees, Peyton Richardson, shared a fond memory
she has with Dr. Estes: “Last year, Dr. Estes was my
advisor as well as Mr. Hunt, and every time I would
struggle in Spanish, we would meet by the pond
area close to the biology room. We would study
Spanish, and one day this frog made a noise like
it was a bird or something, and we were terrified.
When we went to go look at it, the frog jumped
away, and it was funny.” Freshman advisee Rhea
Ajmera stated, “She always brings so much energy
to every advisory we have. She tells us funny stories
and is very supportive.” Similarly, freshman advisee
Maya Adam said, “She’s a really great advisor. I’m
so happy that I got to have her this year.” Dr. Leila
Estes is truly loved by everyone she encounters here
at PDS, with both faculty, staff, and students showing
their admiration for her. We are immensely lucky
to have Dr. Estes a part of our PDS community! r
(Photo/Thatcher Cook)