Josh Cohen Senior Spotlight

Word around the school is you lead every club at Masterman. Care to affirm or deny? Which clubs? 

I would deny that statement given the fact that there are a lot of people who lead clubs besides me... I do help lead Debate, World Affairs/Model UN, Socialist Book Club, and occasionally Jewish Student Union. 

Which one is your favorite? Why?

I would have to say Debate. It's something that I've been doing since like 6th grade, and it's definitely the thing that I spend the most time doing. We meet twice a week and I think besides the activity itself, I've really gotten to know the members of the team and have grown to care a lot about the community not just in masterman, but the people that I'm able to meet at other schools from across the country. On top of that I think that learning about the topics and learning the intricacies of how national circuit debate works is really fascinating and fun. 

As the best high school debater in the world (no exaggeration), what is your favorite memory from your Masterman debate experience? 

Probably when Henry and I won the University of Pennsylvania Debate Tournament. It was really the first time that we were able to compete at such a high level, and before that it had been really hard to participate at this type of debate tournament just because of lack of resources and lack of coaching. The attention we got from this made it so that we were able to actually raise money for the team, which has made it so other people from Masterman have been able to have more resources that we weren’t able to have, which is something that’s really important to me. 

Besides debate, you’ve also been on quite a few sports teams. What has being on these teams taught you, and what advice would you give someone looking to join the culture?

I think being a part of these sports teams has taught me less about actually how to play soccer, or lacrosse, or that brief period of indoor track that I did, but more so just how to be a good team player. There's a lot of, you know, rugged individualism at Masterman and we’re really forced to focus on ourselves, but I think that being a part of a team you're forced to be able to operate within a larger collective and be able to work towards goals that are not just for yourself. I think for people who are not in those spaces yet, just know that everyone was there once too. Everyone had to be the one who's joining the team, and we all have gone through it. We all want more people to be part of these teams, so there's no sort of animosity. We all want to make the space as welcoming as possible. 

What gives you the motivation to be so driven?

Not much anymore to be honest. I feel like senioritis is really hitting. I think though, in a broader sense, just feeling some sort of purpose to contribute to other things besides myself, like other communities, and wanting to make a difference in the world around me. 

How do you spend a typical weekend?

That’s a good question. Honestly, most weekends are spent debating, but if I’m not doing that, I try to spend time with my friends and family. And then besides that it’s a lot of schoolwork and meetings. 

What class at Masterman has had the biggest impact on you?

I think Calculus BC last year was definitely my favorite class, and I think it also had the biggest impact on me, just because it was the biggest jump I've ever taken from any one subject to another. I feel like most classes you kinda go from English 9 to English 10 and it's not much of a difference; you're kind of building on the same skills. But I feel like with Calculus I had to learn an entirely new way to think about math, which was definitely challenging. I met a lot of good friends who I still value to this day, and I really enjoyed just learning to work as a team in that class by collaborating on problems and making sure we all understood the material. 

Tell us about your family and their role in the person you are today. 

My family is obviously very important in my life. My brother is a sophomore at Springside Chestnut Hill. During Covid, we got a lot closer which I think helped me become a better friend and person to people around me. Both of my parents are in reproductive rights and do work with abortion, and they’re both on the lawyering side of things. The work that they’ve done throughout their career has really taught me to use their work to make an impact on those around you. 

Lastly, skiing. What are your thoughts?

I’d say skiing is my favorite thing to do, up there with debate to be honest. I feel like there’s nothing else like it and I'll just say I love it. There’s not much else to say. 

Fast Facts:

Favorite artist/band: Can I name a couple? I’m actually not gonna name the one everyone thinks I'm gonna name. Okay, I would say Sonic Youth, Fontaines DC, The Cure, Radiohead, and Joy division. 

Favorite food: Protein Shake

Favorite country you’ve visited: Thailand

Favorite sport: Lax

Favorite ice cream flavor: It’s not mint chocolate chip anymore I don’t think. Ummm…Americone Dream by Ben and Jerry’s

Favorite season: Fall. Actually, no, Winter. Just anything but Summer, to be honest.