Eva Ludwig
This editorial represents the opinions of 14 out of 14 Outlook editors.
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The Outlook would like to take a chance to recognize positive institutions and policies on our campus.
LENIENT DEADLINES
In recent years, many teachers have made their late work policies more lenient by giving majority or full credit for work submitted after the deadline — changes that the Aragon Outlook is deeply appreciative of. We commend the willingness of these teachers to rethink long-standing, strict approaches to work submission.
The process of reformulating policies can often take much deliberation, as it requires teachers to assess how they prioritize certain values.
“At some point … I realized that my interest was in my students actually doing the assignments,” said history teacher Jayson Estassi. “You just have to get it done and make an honest attempt to demonstrate your understanding. So if you’re trying to do that, why should I deduct points? … Whether you turn something in on time has nothing to do with your quality of understanding.”
This leniency further allows students to prioritize quality of work instead of worrying about when it should be submitted — helping to greatly reduce stress and improve overall understanding.
Teachers providing more leeway for students also allows them to find their own strategies for managing their time and balancing their workload more effectively.
“I would want [more] teachers to question their policies,” said history teacher William Colglazier. “A lot of us have policies that [our] teachers imposed on [us] when [we were] students, [but] there’s new research and new ideas … If you want to keep your policy, that’s fine, but have an inquisitive, deliberative process and reasoning for it.”
LEADERSHIP
Raising awareness for environmental protection and mental health has been on the forefront of Leadership’s agenda, and it’s fair to say they delivered with style and creativity. The Relax and Roll event organized in December 2024 had students mix and match different essential oils, customizing their own aromas while allowing them to destress before the winter finals.
“The essential oil event was probably our best [event],” said Claire O’Brien, freshman and Health and Earth Wellness Crew member. “Everyone really liked that and we ran out really fast.”
Most recently, HEW Crew hosted the Rooted in California event, where mini pots of native flower species were given out to students for Earth day. The Outlook also appreciates the waste-prevention efforts from Leadership, especially with the Homecoming thrift store which collected dress donations and presented them in a thrift store to help reduce waste.
School rallies have long been a highlight for school spirit, and its smooth transitions and eventfulness are testaments to the months of effort and dedication put into planning, from brainstorming to recruiting participants.
“The indoor rallies are definitely my favorite,” said senior and Rally Commission Head Alessandra Hernandez. “One of the first games that I came up with this year was human foosball … it actually took us two weeks to arrange the PVC pipes for human foosball.”
Overall, Leadership has upped the ante in their efforts to build a healthier community at Aragon, and the Outlook wants to highlight the many different departments and commissions for their innovative approaches towards local and community issues.
STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS
With over 80 current student clubs and organizations at Aragon, we recognize our school has been doing a wonderful job at representing a diverse range of interests and backgrounds. From cultural to academic, these strong student organizations have produced quality work that benefits not only the club itself, but the school community as well.
When it comes to Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, there’s an abundance of clubs that cover student interests across fields. They host many fun, interactive activities that allow students to gain insights into the field, such as annual research competitions, workshops or even inviting professionals within those fields.
Moreover, there’s an abundance of cultural clubs on campus like Black Student Union, Chinese Culture Club, Middle Eastern Club and much more. These clubs celebrate the diverse community that Aragon has. Representations like these promote respect and appreciation among different cultures.
“[Being student-led] gives us space to do what we’re passionate about like weekly slides,” said Samirah Field, senior and vice president of Gender and Sexuality Alliance Club. “We do [activities] about whatever we think is important in relation to being queer on campus or being queer in general.”
Students in clubs take strong initiative over these decisions, helping them develop strong leadership skills and allowing students to create more genuine connections and bonds, such as Aragon’s Link Crew program.
“[Link Crew] was very student-led,” said freshman Joshua Wu. “[The] activities are better because I feel more connected to my Link Crew leader than [the] teachers … [My leaders] have similar experiences to me, so they have my perspective.”
Aragon has done a phenomenal job at making sure a diverse range of students are represented on campus, and at fostering leadership skills that have left an impact on both Aragon and other communities.
