Lori Gross, Patch Staff

Lori Gross is an alumna of JTA newswire, the Queens Tribune and Herald Community Newspapers. A graduate of Bennington College, nearly half of her degree was earned at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where she studied Modern Hebrew.

In her time thus far as a reporter, Lori has received a news tip from a Nazi hunter by 3 a.m. phone call, witnessed the first unwrapping of two Egyptian mummies, and interviewed Westboro Baptist Church three times for two separate outlets.

<b>Your Beliefs</b><br>At Patch, we promise always to report the facts as objectively as possible and otherwise adhere to the principles of good journalism. However, we also acknowledge that true impartiality is impossible because human beings have beliefs. So in the spirit of simple honesty, our policy is to encourage our editors to reveal their beliefs to the extent they feel comfortable. This disclosure is not a license for you to inject your beliefs into stories or to dictate coverage according to them. In fact, the intent is the opposite: we hope that the knowledge that your beliefs are on the record will cause you to be ever mindful to write, report and edit in a fair, balanced way. And if you ever see evidence that we failed in this mission, please let us know.<br><br><b>Politics </b><br>How would you describe your political beliefs?  

My politics have always been a la carte, issue by issue. Often my political intentions vacillate back and forth until I&#39;m in the voting booth. 

Are you registered with a certain party?

I am not registered as a member of any political party. When I became of age to vote, I made a decision to forego the primaries, in order that I not stake an identity with one political ideology. I wanted the ability to be a free visitor to different political camps. <br><br><b>Religion</b><br>How religious would you consider yourself? (casual, observant, devout, non religious)

I am a traditional Jew; Take note please that in some perverse way, being an objective reporter is my second religion.<br><b><br>Local Hot-Button Issues</b><br>What do you think are the most important issues facing the community?

Cheating within the school district.

Where do you stand on each of these issues?

I think kids at Great Neck North have become more and more competitive with one another. At the same time, some parents encourage a do-what-it-takes attitude that doesn&#39;t undermine the appeal of cheating. The school district is Great Neck&#39;s pride, but pride can become hubris.

High level educators within the high schools need to make a greater effort to de-emphasize what&#39;s called a &#34;challenging&#34; course load—a euphemism for high AP credit count. They should also veer from developing &#34;well rounded&#34; kids—a euphemism for over-scheduled. Kids ought to be kids, not careerists.