Publications Club

The Ivies are the top-tier schools, which only the best of the best can get into. Pilibos itself has only had one graduate, in recent years, accepted into an Ivy League school. With the exception of Cornell, all the schools’ most popular majors are economics and political science majors, which could be essential in minimizing your college search if these are not your fields of interest. Yale College is the #1 school in the country and for good reason too. Its history and English departments are historically renowned and its most popular majors are government and economics. With an average GPA of 4.1, SAT/ACT scores of 1540 and 33 and an acceptance rate of 7%, it is clear as to why it is extremely difficult to be accepted. The #2 school would be Harvard. Harvard’s average GPA of 4.1, SAT/ACT scores of 1540 and 34 and acceptance rate of 6% make it harder to get into than Yale. University of Pennsylvania has a GPA of 3.9, SAT/ACT scores of 1510 and 32 and an acceptance rate of 10%. Brow...

At 12:15 on Friday, January 19, students rushed out of the Abcarian building halls, hoping they would have enough time to get ready for the long awaited, formal. Guys put on their best suits and the girls slipped into their best dresses, anxiously waiting to see what their friends are going to wear. Members of specific grade levels gathered earlier together to start the celebration and take lots of pictures. Soon students started rolling into the beautifully decorated hall in Metropol. The night started off with dining, along with the occasional dancing to the Armenian music being played. However, as the music got more intense, students could not get off the dance floor. The rhythmic beats of Armenian, Arabic, Spanish, and English music filled the hall and the bodies of the students. They took a quick break for some water and kebab, but quickly stood back up to continue dancing. Towards the end of the night, we celebrated Mr. McCrory’s and junior Veronica Mkhsi-Gevokian’s birthdays ...

Human trafficking is the acts of recruitment, transport, transfer, harboring, receipt of persons by means of threat, force, deception, abduction, and fraud. The purpose is exploitation, prostitution, sexual exploitation, forced labour, and act of slavery. The majority of those who are victims of human trafficking are women and children around the ages of 12-14. The month of January is considered Human Trafficking Awareness month; as a result, Councilwoman Nury Martinez has partnered with a service organization known as “Journey Out and Saving Innocence.” Martinez has conducted a toiletry drive to help aid victims of human trafficking. The councilwoman visited Pilibos on January 22, 2018 to talk to the 10th and 11th graders about the awareness of human trafficking and about her toiletry drive. Nshan Blikian, 17, president of the Philanthropy club has organized a toiletry drive as well. All proceeds of the Philanthropy club’s drive will be sent to Councilwoman Martinez’s drive. Clubs su...

One very popular option for many Pilibos graduates is the UC system, which offers more affordable and more practical 4-year university options than other private school or Ivy options. There are currently 9 universities in the UC system. The top UC and the #1 public school in the state is UC Berkeley with world-renowned programs and cozy campus vibes. With an acceptance rate of 15%, average GPA of 3.87 and SAT/ACT scores of 1440 and 32, UC Berkeley is an extremely selective school. Its most popular majors are economics and cellular biology. Probably the most well-known UC is UCLA. With an acceptance rate of 17%, average GPA of 4.31 and SAT/ACT scores of 1370 and 29, UCLA is extremely selective. UCLA has a holistic approach, meaning they view the whole application and there technically is no Although it has a holistic approach, its application process holds much weight on GPA. Its most popular majors are economics and political science. The second-tier schools are UC San Diego, UC S...

Net neutrality is the concept of having free access to the Internet. When an individual accesses the Internet, they expect to freely visit any website at any time. The concept prohibits Internet service providers like AT&T and Verizon from blocking, speeding, or slowing down any applications or websites we use. Net neutrality allows individuals the power to exhibit their right of having freedom of speech and communication online. On account of net neutrality, we are able to freely post any data of our choosing online. The Internet has always adhered to this concept, therefore it was quite shocking to hear how it was being dismantled. On Thursday, December 14th, the Federal Communications Commission voted on dismantling the rules which would prevent internet service providers from having access to the internet. This action reversed the decision made in 2015 under the Obama administration, which was aimed at having more control over the providers. However, according to the new F....

I had always longed to be more involved in the world of activism, whether it was advocating for gender equality or for Armenia’s justice. Personally, I built a stronger connection with advocating for women’s rights particularly. One day, I decided to transform this passion for activism into conducting productive work. Surely I was familiar with the worldwide renown UN Women organization and it seemed quite impossible for me to work with them directly. Therefore, I happily discovered the Los Angeles USNC for UN Women. One could not imagine the excitement on my face when I found out that they had an open position for volunteers. I began as a volunteer, attending monthly chapter meetings and events, tabling for our cause, and conducting a lot of research. As I continued my work with the chapter, I began to work more directly with the Founder and President of the Greater LA Chapter USNC for UN Women, Cathy Hillman––a truly inspirational, hard working, and committed leader devoted to this ...

By: Veronica Mkhsi-Gevorkian and Nayiri Artounians As we get closer to the end of our journey in high school, many of us wonder which school would be best for us. In the next series of articles, we will present different options that may help you keep your options open. Stay tuned each week for a new set of colleges/universities that you may find interesting! A liberal arts college is a college that focuses on liberal arts and sciences as its undergraduate program. There are many schools under the category of a liberal arts school. Each school mentioned will include average GPA, average SAT/ACT score, acceptance rate, and popular majors. Claremont Mckenna College is a co-educational private liberal arts college located in Claremont, California with an acceptance rate of 11%. Average GPA is 4.0 with an SAT/ACT score 1490 and 31. Their popular majors are economics and political science/government. Harvey Mudd College is a private residential liberal arts college located in Claremon...

Nayiri Artounians December 14, 2017 The annual Pilibos Walkathon took place on Wednesday, November 29. Pilibos students and teachers took part in the walk up and down Hillhurst Ave, holding signs and wearing their school spirit proudly, while Pilibos faculty drove around, honking and cheering. The annual walkathon is the culmination of a month-long effort to raise money for the school. Individual classrooms raised money by filling water bottles and winning free periods; clubs also took part by hosting bake sales and fundraisers. One school favorite is Baron Kevork’s annual Yoga Night, where he educates students on the art of meditation and being one. Perhaps the highlight of the fundraising is the annual Pie-A-Senior day, where people from all grades get the chance to attack the seniors. Through all these efforts, the school was able to raise a whopping $141,000 this year. And students wore this achievement proudly as they walked up and down the streets of Hollywood. When ...

BruinMUN  Nayiri Artounians December 12, 2017 Shouts of “Moderated Caucus” and “Motion To…” are what is heard in the air in MUN’s ambience of fun and intense competition. Hundreds of delegates, tons of walking, hours of intense political debate and presenting solutions to today’s pressing international problems: these are just some of the many actions that take place at a typical Model UN conference. The Pilibos Model UN team had the chance to experience the hustle and bustle of MUN life themselves at BruinMUN on November 11 and 12. BruinMUN is UCLA’s Model UN conference for high schoolers and is also one of the bigger conferences in the country. Before the conference, delegates had been assigned various committees, such as the GA Plenary (General Assembly), SOCHUM (Social and Cultural Assembly), and UNDP (UN Development Program), which are modeled after the actual UN. They were then assigned topics within their committee, which they had to do extensive researc...