March 31, 2025 by Olivia Clemmensen (‘26)
Local:
-SSHS Junior/Senior Prom Tickets are on Sale: Prom season is upon us! The joined Saratoga Springs High School prom for Juniors and Seniors will be May 17th at the Saratoga Springs City Center 6pm-10pm. Ticket sales will begin on April 2nd and end May 2nd online and in person, with online sales through “My School Bucks” and in person during lunch or after school in B214. If you are planning to bring a student not from SSHS, plan to fill out a guest form before purchasing tickets. Check ParentSquare for more details and links!
-Trump Withdraws Rep. Elise Stefanik’s Nomination as U.N Ambassador: Elise Stefanik, a U.S. representative for New York’s 21st congressional district, was nominated months ago by President Trump to be the new United States’ ambassador to the United Nations, but this nomination was pulled this past Thursday in effort to “maintain EVERY Republican Seat in Congress” Trump confirmed to AP News. She is the fourth Trump Administration nominee who didn’t make it through the confirmation process. Following this withdrawal, President Trump asked Stefanik to remain in congress to hold her seat as a republican representative, since the republican majority is slim. If she were to be pulled out of congress, the republican majority would be less, making it harder to pass pieces of Trump’s ambitious and often divisive presidential agenda.
Photo source: thehill.com
Trump withdraws Rep. Elise Stefanik’s nomination for UN ambassador | AP News
National:
-Tufts PhD Student Detained by Masked Officers: This past Tuesday, Rumeysa Ozturk, a 30-year-old Turkish international student at Tufts University was ambushed on the streets of Somerville Massachusetts as she was walking to break her Ramadan fast with some of her friends. 6 plain clothes police officers, who wore face coverings and hoods, handcuffed her and drove Ozturk away in an SUV, and then was later flew her over 1500 miles away from her college campus to the South Louisiana ICE Processing Center in Basile. Ozturk is in the United States legally under a valid F-1 student visa, so this ambush came to a large surprise and seemed to not have a reason. However, this is not the only instance of this kind recently. Ozturk’s unexpected transport to an ICE Processing Center is “one of several international university students facing deportation following a Trump administration order to crack down on pro-Palestinian demonstrations on college campuses,” said CNN. As of late, Ozturk’s lawyers continue to fight for her release.
Rumeysa Ozturk: A PhD student was snatched by masked officers in broad daylight. Then she was flown 1,500 miles away | CNN photo source: mcall.com
-Department of Education workers laid off on Friday: President Trump’s plans of “gutting” government agencies has now taken affect in the Department of Education, where over half of its federal workers are now out of their jobs. On March 20th, he signed an executive order meant to “dismantle the agency” said USA Today. The Education Department’s responsibilities are now consolidated among almost half of the original department staff. This consolidation is in the name of “government efficiency”, but concerns have been since raised for many about how the department will “administer funds and programs that millions of students and schools rely on” or even stay afloat reported USA Today.
Pushed from jobs, Education Department workers pack their bags
Global:
-New Catholic Saint… the Youngest Addition: The Catholic Church’s first millennial saint, Carlo Acutis was recently set to be canonized on April 27 in front of the Vatican’s St. Peter Basilica. His body is now at the church of Santa Maria Maggiore on view wearing jeans, a sweatshirt and sneakers- one of the most seemingly “ordinary” to-be canonized saints, one that related most to today’s young people. More than a million people have paid homage to Acutis over the past year. Acutis died of leukemia at 15 in 2006, but was said to be always kind and optimistic, and striving to be the best person possible. Acutis had a deep devotion to the catholic faith and tried to spread his faith to the younger generation through the media. He was recognized for the” miraculous healing of a child in Brazil who recovered in a ‘scientifically inexplainable’ manner” reported AP News. In his teens, he said “everyone is born an original, but many die photocopies”. This new saint will pioneer a new generation of religious figures in the modern day doing good for a new world.
Who was Carlo Acutis, the Catholic Church’s new millennial saint | AP News
Crowds flock to newest Catholic saint in Assisi — a millennial teen | AP News
-Devastating Earthquake Struck the Southeast Asian Country of Myanmar: On Friday, March 28th, the civil war-ravaged and already impoverished country of Myanma suffered a fatal 7.7 magnitude earthquake. Hundreds of homes, offices, mosques and Buddhist monasteries were severely damaged, with over 1600 people reported dead; but furhter information or updates have been cut short due to the control of the military junta in the country’s media, so the death toll and damage could be a lot worse than what is currently publicized. This quake had only added to the destruction and misery of the nation, further leaving Myanmar disconnected from the rest of the world and its people impoverished. The powerful and severe quake had an “unleashed energy equivalent to ‘334 atomic bombs’” a geologist told CNN. If you want to help those affected by this fatal disaster, or learn more about it, click the second link below. Photo source: vangaurdngr.com