Myers Park Hoofprint

The Myers Park High School Newspaper

Emma Dowdeswell

The Dark Side of Women’s Basketball

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Louisiana State University, A college known for sports, tailgates, and an upbeat student life, has had one of our generation’s most historic sports seasons. With women’s basketball becoming increasingly popular, it’s no wonder their talented, renowned players are being praised for their intricate skills and innovative techniques that make women’s basketball so popular. However, good things do bring issues. Recently, Louisiana women’s basketball coach Kim Mulkey has been under fire for making many irresponsible coaching decisions, and repeatedly tone-deaf comments about her players. Due to this, the bad side of women’s basketball has come to light. One of the main comments that has put Mulkey under fire was her many homophobic comments about former Baylor University basketball player Brittney Griner. Lsureveille.com states, “Griner said she felt that Mulkey wouldn’t have approved if she had publicly come out as gay. She also said that Mulkey required her to cover up her tattoos by wearing long sleeves under her jersey. Both Griner and a Baylor teammate sourced in the article said Mulkey and the coaching staff thought that having an openly gay player would look bad for recruiting.”. Although these comments were sourced back to 2013, Mulkey works very closely with LGBTQ+ players, with almost 22.7% of the WNBA being members of the lesbian community. It is hard to be comfortable with a coach who doesn’t respect who you are, or recognize your community as valid. Many players believe that she ‘went after’ gay players, making comments about their clothes, and singling them out for their sexuality. Basketball player Kelli Griffin (Baylor) made many comments about her frequent targetting. This was due to Mulkey drawing attention to Griffin’s clothes and issuing a suspension that ultimately ended the player’s career. Griffin believes it started after Mulkey found out she was gay. 

The Washington Post has also accused Mulkey of continuing to accept interviews even though she was suspected to have COVID-19, they state “In November, she told reporters after a road game that they could blame her if they were sick at Thanksgiving. ‘I ain’t a sissy,’ she said, holding a tissue and choking back sniffles. ‘I’ve got some kind of cold. It might be covid, but I ain’t testing.”. This controversial attitude has put Mulkey under fire and made LSU as an educational institution seem uninterested in their students’ safety. Additionally, Mulkey’s explosive and fiery attitude over basketball has also bled into many of her interviews. Recently told journalists in an after-game press conference that she plans to seek legal action against The Washington Post. This was due to their article which criticizes Mulkey’s dismissive attitude amongst her LGBTQ+ players. 

Mulkey is an exceptional coach. She led the team to win their first-ever championship in 2023, challenging players like Caitlin Clark, and devising winning plays is the sole reason the team was able to win with a score of 102-85. Her flashy outfits and unique reactions in the game were also one of the reasons why women’s basketball has become so increasingly popular. Mulkey needs to work on the way she treats her players, but not how she treats the game. It’s clear she has just gotten out of touch with the challenges of being a collegiate athlete and additionally needs to educate and open her mind about the LGBTQ+ community. 

A Look Inside AP Seminar with Ms. Guillemette

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Photo contributed by Emma Dowdeswell

AP Seminar is a foundational course that aims to equip students with the power to analyze,  and evaluate information with accuracy and precision to craft to communicate

evidence-based arguments. This class aims to teach cooperation, group work, communication, and deadlines through hands-on hands-on. It’s not your regular AP class, it requires both students and teachers to open their minds and explore similarities and differences within groups. I  asked  current AP Seminar teacher, Ms. Guillemette, the following questions to get a better understanding of the class. 

-What made you decide to be the next AP seminar teacher?

I was approached by Mrs. Armstrong, who asked me if I was interested in teaching the course when the previous teacher was leaving Myers Park. I thought it would be a fun course to teach, and would also be a great challenge for me.

– What’s one thing you’ve noticed students improve on in the seminars?

One thing I think that students have improved on the most is developing arguments and supporting them with evidence. Parallel to that is also a big improvement in being able to analyze and evaluate other people’s arguments and to really think critically about the ideas they are presented with. Being able to question and objectively engage with arguments is a really important skill to have as you go into the real world, because you will be confronted with lots of information, opinions, and rhetoric, and being able to sift through that and really identify what is relevant and credible is so important for deciding what to believe.

– What differences do you notice when teaching English 2 and Seminar? Any similarities?

The biggest difference I see is that in English II, the emphasis is on developing writing style and structure. In AP Seminar, writing is less about having an engaging style, but in developing clear and sound arguments. There is also an expectation in AP Seminar to conduct research at a very high level of academic scholarship, and to really synthesize information from a variety of sources as opposed to focusing on individual pieces of literature.

– What’s one thing AP students need to work on?

I think the biggest skill that AP Students need to work on is flexible thinking, going beyond superficial understandings, and being able to see the connective threads between ideas and subjects. AP Seminar is not a course that requires you to regurgitate factual information, but is really designed to develop students’ ability to think critically, to develop original ideas, and to articulate the connections between ideas. This is very different from the skills they might be practicing in other AP classes that just require them to know a set of information. I think engaging more with different points of view, learning about different varying topics, and overall being a curious and creative person are qualities that really help students in AP Seminar.

-What one thing would you change about the AP seminar?

One thing I am a bit critical of in AP Seminar are the rubrics, which I feel are not always concrete or clear about what the goals of the task are. It takes a lot of unpacking together with students to really get to the heart of what AP Seminar is asking for and what that actually looks like. If students don’t have a teacher who is able to clearly articulate what the concrete goals are for skills and knowledge, they might not be as successful, which is a weakness in the course, I believe.

Through Ms. Guillmettes perspective, we can see that AP seminar has  intricate and complex material that students don’t usually get to learn in a regular English and humanities class. Many of the AP classes teach to a test, but AP seminar equips students with the ability to work with others and build the foundation for successful leadership and communication skills. 

SAT Changes in the Ivy Leagues

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Many quiver at the idea of taking a test that combines all of their high school knowledge, but some students take this opportunity to show where they thrive and excel. Standardized tests like the ACT and SAT, which used to be mandatory, have become optional requirements when applying to college. This is due to factors like the pandemic and schools wanting to adopt the idea of giving students a choice in their applications. The Urban Institute states, “The number of four-year universities and colleges with test-optional policies has nearly doubled from 713 to 1,350 since spring 2020”. Many schools have adopted test-optional policies to best-fit students’ needs. 

However, test-optional policies create an issue for many universities. Acuity Insights states that “Widening the net of viable candidates is an intended consequence of test-optional admissions. The increased pressure on admissions offices is not.” Due to the bigger candidate pool and extra pressure, many universities take longer to accept and deny students. This is especially true for prestigious universities. Due to the large pool of applicants, it is harder for these universities to make decisions; consequently, they make misconceptions about many applicants. 

Dartmouth, a highly prestigious university with an acceptance rate of 6.2%, has dealt with this issue significantly. They have changed their applications to be test-required as of this year, which aims to benefit students rather than harm them. Sian Beilock, Dartmouth’s President, conducted an internal study on standardized tests, which revealed that standardized test scores outperformed high school grades, essays, and teacher recommendations in predicting students’ success at Dartmouth. Reinstating test scores will better help high-achieving students by understandably displaying their strengths. Additionally, implementing test-required policies will help admission officials make decisions in a faster and more timely manner. This is because admission officers will no longer have to look at applications in a lengthened manner.

Dartmouth has also decided to implement  application test requirements to better help low-income students. Economictimes.com states, “Unexpectedly, the researchers found that Dartmouth’s test-optional policy during the pandemic negatively impacted lower-income applicants. Many students from disadvantaged backgrounds chose not to submit their SAT or ACT scores, wrongly assuming their scores were too low. In reality, these scores could have demonstrated resilience and potential, potentially securing their admission”. This is because test results are a helpful tool for admissions staff to find high achievers, especially if the kid is attending a high school where admissions have a history of fewer details regarding the high school and their transcript. The change will benefit students by giving them more of an advantage, by showing their high-achieving qualities in a standardized form, more than just based on what their high school has to offer. 

The HEA group, a research and consulting agency focused on college access and success, found that only 18.5% of Ivy League students are low-income. This shocking statistic proves that college admissions are engineered to prioritize high-income students. This is because it’s much easier to stand out to college admissions when your parents can afford tutoring, sports programs, and essay editors that can set you apart. Standardized testing allows students to show how the school has served them, and it also displays how they can perform. Schools are also interested in looking at job success, Standardized test scores are also good indicators of college and job success. Ultimately, Standardized tests can offer evidence of and promote academic rigor, which is invaluable in college and as well as in students’ careers. Matthew Pietrafetta, Ph.D., Founder of Academic Approach, argues that the tests “create gravitational pull toward higher achievement”.

Whether or not standardized tests are beneficial, they do serve to demonstrate many skills that are the best fits into prestigious universities. They can be good indicators that show students’ success and help them get accepted into schools and programs.