by Ella Steinhilber | 19 Mar 2019 | Europe, Nationalism, Politics, School Year Abroad, Student Posts
“Yellow vests” protests have rocked France for months. We watched angry demonstrators march in Brittany — proof the movement is national in scope. Saturday after Saturday since last November, France has seen protesters take to the streets in...
by Odelia Putterman | 18 Jun 2018 | Asia, China, Personal Reflections, School Year Abroad, Student Posts, Youth Voices
I spent the past year in Beijing. The Chinese language has taught me that change is inevitable — and life will yield new loves for me. “The Orchard Pavilian Gathering” (Wikimedia Commons) This past year I lived in China as a 17-year-old American high...
by News Decoder | 7 Jun 2018 | Art, Contests, Friends Seminary, Greens Farms Academy, School Year Abroad, Student Posts, Thacher School, Westover School, Women, Youth Voices
These photos were submitted by students participating in News-Decoder’s twice-yearly Reporting and Writing Contest. You can see the winning entries among Student Posts. *** By Yatong Shi (Westover School) In my photo report “Censorship,” I explore...
by Gabriella Casagrande | 29 Mar 2018 | Health and Wellness, Personal Reflections, School Year Abroad, Student Posts, Youth Voices
“I’m so depressed.” “I’m going to shoot myself.” Really? I hear lots of people speak so lightly of mental health disorders. Be careful of what you say. Champion U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Phelps recently revealed...
by Jaeli Rose and Clio Morrison | 21 Mar 2018 | Europe, School Year Abroad, Spain, Student Posts, Terrorism
The island of Corsica has seen rulers come and go. Part of France for 250 years, it retains an uneasy rapport with overlords in Paris. Supporters of Corsica’s nationalist coalition wave Corsican flags during a campaign meeting, Corte, Corsica, 29 November 2017....
by Ellis Clark, Peyton Spolansky and Feven Yared | 20 Mar 2018 | Europe, School Year Abroad, Spain, Student Posts
Catalonia has long dreamed of independence from outside rulers. Now it’s at loggerheads with its Spanish masters — at an awkward time for Europe. Catalan pro-independence supporters demonstrate in Barcelona, Spain, 11 March 2018 (EPA-EFE/Quique Garcia)...
by Adrian Balvuena | 15 Mar 2018 | Education, Personal Reflections, School Year Abroad, Student Posts, Youth Voices
My parents came to the U.S. from Mexico, and I grew up in the Bronx. They have sacrificed so much for me — a burden I need to learn to live with. Immigrants at a naturalization ceremony in New York, 22 March 2013 (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer) I can’t recall a...
by Peyton Spolansky | 9 Mar 2018 | Europe, School Year Abroad, Student Posts, Women, Youth Voices
I was in Spain for International Women’s Day. It was unbelievable to see so many people fighting for the same things that I fight for in America. (Photos by Peyton Spolansky) I had not expected more than a few dozen people to participate in International...
by News Decoder | 7 Mar 2018 | Personal Reflections, School Year Abroad, Student Posts
By Daniela Martinez There’s something satisfying about being made for the sun. I’ve always taken secret satisfaction switching languages in mid-sentence. Or in knowing my parents can cross deserts and in checking off “Hispanic” on applications. My...
by Clio Morrison | 12 Feb 2018 | Art, Friends Seminary, School Year Abroad, Student Posts, Youth Voices
“The darkroom is my sanctuary. I find peace in the red ambient light. I dodge and burn my images with purpose and passion.” The author, after a stint in the darkroom One minute in the developer, 30 seconds in the stop bath and two minutes in the fixer. I...