Inside Edison

Let’s brighten up your day one panel at a time. Edison’s gone solar! This new prospect is thanks to Principal Ojeda and staff who voiced their desire for change. When you think solar, what comes to mind? If you thought the sun, you’re correct. Solar power is derived from the sun's radiant light. Solar panels take this power from the sun and convert it into everyday accessible electricity. A common misconception is that this is a luxury primarily used by wealthy or super environmentally conscious individuals. It seems pricey to folks in simple terms. So it may be quite surprising to learn that the next sentence very well juxtaposes this assumption. Edison not only saves money every month on electricity but produces so much so that we can give back to the community! Producing 100 Megawatts of power, on a sunny day, every switch that is turned on inside this school is solar powered. With this advance, we lead society by promoting a healthier environment.

Questions that may arise would be: How would Solar energy affect our school? Does it change anything? Incorporating solar energy would make great news for Edison by helping our surroundings in many ways! This decision was formed when our team was planning how Edison could help its students through the upcoming years. In a meeting with other members of the Department of Education, our principal proposed to add to the electrical installation programs for students to gain experience with solar panels. Luckily, the opportunity of going solar arose. Working with the company Solar One, they agreed to take over the full cost of this procedure. The school gives them the extra energy produced and in turn we are given a lifetime guarantee where they will maintain and repair any issues for the life of the panels. The work was done over the summer and as of a month ago Edison is officially solar! This decision was a free and no-cost add-on to the school! Electricity is one of the main sources that the school uses and receiving solar energy would only prove advantageous to us. The price of electricity depends on the entire square footage of the school. For example, an entire 800,000 square foot school district would pay about $1 million dollars for cooling, lighting, ventilation, and more. Solar energy is free and clean energy from a renewable source.

This is only the beginning! There are currently talks underway of new implementations as we push forward together to make the school fully green. You should never be afraid to reach out to our principal and/or staff with any ideas you may have for any future works. In fact, they actually prefer it. With our latest mini-revolution we are certain to make changes in our society. We owe it to the Edison team to have put this plan into action. Remember, Edison's gone solar. Welcome to a brighter world!

Ever since students were hit hard by COVID-19 and had to switch to remote learning for the past 18 months, we were isolated and forgot basic socializing skills. It was incomparable because humans are built to be social and have been doing so throughout history. The time in isolation caused many people to become socially anxious and made us apprehensive about going back to “normalcy.” We’ve become addicted to social media and attached to our phones that without it, we feel anxious. We’d rather be on our phones than conversing and bonding with each other. People feel strange about being back in school while we are still dealing with the COVID pandemic.

Freshmen students expressed that it’s difficult for them to interact with new people because it’s their first year in high school. A sophomore said they’re excited to be in person and meet new people this year because they didn't have the opportunity to do so last year. However, they’re timid about making new friends. Juniors have stated that they’re more self-conscious/nervous when talking to new people and would prefer to keep a reasonable distance from others. The students also noted how they constantly have to repeat themselves because the masks are a disadvantage in communicating. Seniors at Edison are sad they can’t have an average final year. But a few stated they are okay with not having a prom or senior trip and are happy to be back in school and see their friends. The school’s COVID restrictions are to stay 3-feet apart in the classrooms and at lunch, which makes it difficult for students to interact with each other. Edison students miss sitting next to their friends without a mask on and a space between them. Due to this, kids are forced to turn to their phones rather than interact.

Everyone got used to lying in bed and using technology all day. Students and teachers would log into zoom every morning with their cameras off and not interact. Now we are back in the building and have had to transition to an environment we haven’t been in for the past 18 months. People needed time to adjust to in-person learning.

During the beginning of quarantine, students lost contact with each other and became isolated. COVID has had a severe impact on people's social lives and communication skills. Having lost out on most of our high school experience, we want to have as much fun as possible, even if it means wearing a mask. Being back in school has been a challenge for everyone, but we will still have fun and adapt to this new environment!

Edison, a school that offers a wide variety of clubs/activities and extracurriculars to its students. Anything from clubs for students who share common interests to those interested in advancing their academic achievement. However this begs the question, how do you know which is the best fit for you? Let’s think about your options compared to your interests. Do you have an interest in building strong leadership skills and confidence with yourself in different situations? Do you wish to further your understanding of current healthcare issues? Are you interested in creating new friendships and creating social networks? If you answered yes to any of these questions, consider HOSA a good fit for you.

As an Edison student chances are that you’ve heard this name at least once. Well, good news! You might have a few questions about this organization, such as What is HOSA? What do they do? What are the benefits of joining HOSA? I have the answers for you.

HOSA or future health professionals is an international CTSO (Career & Technical Education Student Organization), with members all around the world, ranging from the US and the US territories to the Asian-Pacific region. The main focus is on the understanding of the issues going on in healthcare today. In the past members of this organization met with guest speakers who work in the field. This provided first-hand insight into what is going on. Speakers from mental health organizations (NAMI) and those that help with the registry for bone marrow donations (Be the Match) are some examples of past speakers. Edison has also taken students from our CTE Medical Assisting program and had them perform what they learned so far in their classes to the members of HOSA. Overall, HOSA provides an enriching experience to solidify students' interest in healthcare. HOSA is usually the host of 3 annual blood drive events, however, due to Covid restrictions, they are unable to this year.

There are many benefits that come with joining HOSA according to HOSA advisor Dr. Savitsky. They range from self-improving and social benefits to educational benefits. The self-improving benefits include the development of leadership qualities and skills, self-confidence, and motivation. The social benefits include being able to create friendships and social networks that could help you with connections in your career later on in life (finding this through other members of HOSA and in community service events). Another social benefit would also be expanding teamwork skills, so in the end, you’ll be able to productively work independently and in group settings. The way HOSA would help to expand your educational goals would be helping you to develop workplace, academic, and technical skills, setting realistic educational and career goals, and helping to understand current healthcare issues.

We spoke to a few HOSA members about what HOSA is like, what it means to them and why they joined. To HOSA member, Safrana Safa, HOSA is a welcoming and fun environment, the people there are “kind, funny and passionate about what they do”. Safrana joined HOSA because it is healthcare-focused and it’s a great opportunity to engage with others while also learning more about your future career. According to Safrana, this organization stands for connection, opportunities, and interest building. HOSA enables its members to help the community through creative projects while forming new bonds along the way. We also spoke to HOSA member Chelsea Persaud, she joined HOSA to develop leadership and communication skills. Chelsea believes that HOSA stands for community and helps students gain more knowledge and skill. Our HOSA members definitely recommend signing up to and being a part of their community.

All Edison students are welcome to join HOSA, membership applications are available in room 215, HOSA dues are $25, you can pay online through the school website (Parent tab --> online payment system --> Clubs & Societies) or bring them along with your application to room 215. Throughout the year HOSA members sell things like candy canes, Halloween cards, and breast cancer ribbons. Money from the breast cancer ribbons that members are selling now, will be given to the American Cancer Society - Making Strides event. The Halloween Boo Cards were sold to raise funds to support Be The Match and help fund members' registration fees for participation at the Spring Leadership Conference. In the past, fundraising went to other organizations such as disaster relief campaigns to help families that were devastated by hurricanes, flooding, etc, buying Christmas gifts for children living in homeless shelters, and other less fortunate individuals. This December HOSA will be hosting the Candy Cane Express so that Edison students and staff can send a card and candy cane to their friends.

“You'll have to stay tuned to see what's next!”- Dr. Margaret Savitzky, Advisor of HOSA.

The 2021-2022 school year has been successfully kicked off with an amazing start! After a year and a half of sitting on a computer all day we are finally back in the building and reliving the old traditions that we completed prior to the pandemic. Here’s your news of this year's fall sports and events!

Students having fun during Fright Night

Fright Night was held this year on October 29th, 2021 with amazing reactions to the event! The night occurred in the cafeteria with games, candy, music, spooky decorations, and the most popular photo booth. Everyone who attended was vaccinated and masked in order to prevent the spread of Covid-19 (because who said you couldn't have fun in a pandemic?). During the course of three hours, everyone was able to enjoy their time with friends and delicious treats.

Student dressed as "Darth Vader"

Edison also had a great sports season with many wins and quite few losses. With seven wins and five losses, the Boy’s Varsity Soccer team has been doing spectacularly in making sure they can do their best while creating a great reputation for Edison. The Girl’s Varsity Soccer team finished astronomically amazing with an undefeated season. The Girl’s Varsity Volleyball team played hard all season along with the Girl’s Bowling team. The Boy’s Bowling Team has three wins and four losses. Congratulations to all the fall sports teams and we are really proud of their hard work and effort. We can not wait to watch and report Edison sports this winter season. Be sure to follow taehs_athletics on Instagram for updates on TAEHS’ sports teams and follow the individual teams.

Assistants to the Editor: Safrana Safa & Bianca Roman

Writers: Nusrat Farah, Mohammad Hussain, Komalpreet Kaur, Safrana Khan, Kristal Markevitch, Carissa Persaud, Sasha Persaud, Johana Prince, Cindy Sarabia & Kajal Singh

Art: Tristen Bellinger, Evelyn Peralta, Ian Ragoonanan, Jessica Ramlakan, & Maisha Rupanti

Designers: Johnson Cristales & Leana Rampersad

Advisor: Ms. Psaltos. Email npsaltos@taehs.org for information or article ideas