Finding the good amidst COVID-19
By Tanner Smith, Hannah Chern, and Anna Owsley
October 23, 2020
There’s no denying that COVID-19 has taken its toll across the country – costing thousands of lives, disrupting the economy and completely altering everyday life. However, in the face of these struggles, students have sought ways to make the most of these unprecedented times. Amidst long, dark months...
Their heritage is more than a month
By Caroline Caruso and Ana Cuen
October 23, 2020
More than a percentage. More than a statistic written on paper. Their heritage reaches far beyond the confines of a population census. Their story is more. Although a national holiday, many gloss over the significance of Hispanic Heritage Month, failing to dive beneath the surface of its bigge...
The Shadow Pandemic
By Rebecca Michaeli, Iowa City High School
October 23, 2020
Trigger warning: domestic abuse An alarming secondary crisis lurks behind the COVID-19 pandemic most of us are familiar with. The so-called “shadow pandemic” refers to the increase in domestic abuse cases. The shadow pandemic, though not as prominent in the public consciousness as COVID-19, is...
Finding harmony amidst chaos
By Alexis Miller, Lincoln High School
October 22, 2020
“A year ago today, I couldn’t ever envision this conversation taking place,” said Dan Carlson, LHS Band Director. For all students, this year is a change. But, for music students, this year is catastrophic. Every day holds another set of unknowns and another round of cancellations. Disappointment...
Deinhammer featured by Apple for CMS East gardening class
By Anjali Vishwanath, Coppell High School
October 22, 2020
The Coppell Middle School East course guide has expanded to include one new elective course: seventh grade science teacher Jodie Deinhammer’s gardening class. Deinhammer also leads the CMS East Sustainability Club, which provides students with the opportunity to participate in fundraising activities...
Fearing for the Future of the Planet, La Salle Students Take Action on Climate Change, Calling for Systemic Changes from Leaders
By Mary Loeb, La Salle Catholic Preparatory High School
October 22, 2020
Around the globe, youth have spearheaded the movement for climate change action, driven by increasing frustration with a lack of action from leaders and compelled by the fear that their generation may not have a certain future on the planet. Climate change has become an issue of increasing conce...
Droughts, wildfires, and pollution: California’s hellscape
By Kai Yoshida, Carlmont High School
October 22, 2020
Global warming: gas emissions trap heat in the atmosphere and the polar ice caps. That statement is too vague. Global warming is but a part of the much, much more significant problem. Environmental change: global warming, water pollution, air pollution, environmental degradation, droughts, invasive ...
Students and Teachers Pay the Price of Online Learning
By Mercedes Barriga, Antonio Heras, Angelica Hernandez Contreras, and Britney Perez
October 22, 2020
With the city of Santa Ana having the highest numbers of COVID-19 cases in Orange County, schools in the Santa Ana Unified School District (SAUSD) are continuing distance learning for the start of the 2020-2021 school year as a precautionary measure. It’s been a major adjustment for both students...
Grady gets out the vote
By Yei Bin Andrews, Henry W. Grady High School
October 22, 2020
Some have called 2020 the year of reckoning. Others have dubbed it the worst year in recent memory. However, for some Grady students, 2020 has been the year of political activism. Grady alumna Sarah Taylor graduated in 2015. At the time, Taylor did not imagine herself working with a political party. ...
An inside look at teaching during a pandemic
By Zoe DeYoung, Parkway West High School
October 22, 2020
Before we left school March 13 of last school year, we were told to empty our lockers and bring all of our textbooks home. Some felt this was an overreaction by administration, but many minds were changed after seeing the data behind the decision. COVID-19 took the world by surprise, and usurped the ability to safely leav...
Latin Alumni Call Older Alumni to Combat Loneliness
By Akshay Garapati, Latin School of Chicago
October 21, 2020
After graduating from Latin in 2017, Connor Kaniewski looked for a way to give back to the Latin community. He learned that sometimes all it takes is a simple phone call. This act has proven invaluable amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which has lasted nearly eight months and killed over 200,000 people...
Redhawks launch sustainable coffee ground company
By Hannah Beeler and Saachi Kuchu
October 21, 2020
For many students, the thought of coffee is one of the first things on their minds in the morning. What some don’t think about is the amount of waste their cup of joe creates. After use, coffee grounds go to landfills, where they become harmful pollutants that emit greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. However,...
Halloween’s trick becomes Atlanta’s treat
By Lindsay Ruhl, Henry W. Grady High School
October 21, 2020
Neighborhoods throughout Atlanta have new ways to celebrate Halloween this year while staying safe and socially distant. Halloween parades across the city have been cancelled due to a state ban on gatherings larger than 50 people. Despite this, residents have developed creative ways to adapt trick-or-treating,...
Unmasking a fashion trend: COVID-19 coverings lead to Lancers’ collection for trendy, stylish wardrobe for going out
By Dominique Chang, Sunny Hills High School
October 20, 2020
At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in mid-March, senior Meagan Kimbrell purchased her first mask: a $7, gray fabric with white polka dots from the Target at Town Center near Sunny Hills High School. Not knowing how long quarantine would last, Kimbrell decided to buy some more face coverings, leaving...
Unmuted
By Marta Leira, Fareeha Ahmad, and Maya Chu
October 20, 2020
The streets of Iowa City were lined with protesters demanding racial equality. Groups chanting “Hands up, don’t shoot” and “Say their names” filled every corner of the city while voices echoed across graffiti-lined streets. Megaphones boomed over the crowd as organizers shared their experiences,...
Students battle stress, fatigue, apathy as they adjust to virtual classes
By Josie Bradsby, McCallum High School
October 19, 2020
The online school year has started, and it is a stark change from the normal, in-person school. Compared to the relatively relaxed online courses of the spring semester, online leanring in the fall has meant to provide the same rigor and assessment of in-person classes in an attempt to salvage the year....
Mask Mobile distributes masks to those in need
By Oliver Fichte, Carlmont High School
October 19, 2020
San Mateo County’s Mask Mobile distributed over 900 masks to the hardest-hit communities in the past week to keep families safe during the pandemic. The Mask Mobile project was introduced on Sept. 15 to ensure that the most vulnerable are getting the protection they need from COVID-19. Funded by...
Art teachers bring the art classroom to students’ homes
By Allison Hsieh, Lynbrook High School - CA
October 19, 2020
To many students, art classes play a unique role in their school schedule. It gives them a break from the lecture-based classroom and encourages them to display individuality through their own work. When art classes were at risk of halting due to shelter in place, art teachers worked extensively to bring...
The digital dilemma
By Heidi Du and Audrey Parrish
October 19, 2020
COVID-19 paired with election season has caused a surge in the amount of political discourse that takes place online, leaving students to distinguish between what’s real and what’s fake. In terms of political events, 2020 has provided plenty. With the upcoming presidential election, the many areas...
Rio Alum Wins 2020 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine
By Katelyn Newton, Rio Americano High School
October 19, 2020
Alumnus Charles Rice received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine last week for his groundbreaking contributions to treating Hepatitis C, marking the first Nobel Prize winner to graduate from Rio Americano. In announcing the award, the Nobel committee noted that Rice and his co-winners Harv...
Class of 2002 grad on Missouri’s Nov. 3 ballot for Attorney General
By Juli Mejia and Vijay Viswanathan
October 19, 2020
“What's most important to me is that I'm finding a way to give back as much as I can to the people of our state and do what I can to improve the lives of the people in our state,” Democratic nominee for Attorney General Rich Finneran said. He will be facing Republican nominee and current Attorn...
From ‘B-list’ celebrity to A-list teacher
By Katherine Lee, Willis High School
October 19, 2020
As the house lights dim and the hum of a mic fills the room, the performer looks out into the crowd, takes a deep breath and knows that this is where he belongs. For choir director, Ken Labonski, the stage of the PAC has not been the only stage where he has left an audience speechless. Before he...
MVHS Spanish and French teachers implement a stereotype unit
By Oishee Misra, Monta Vista High School
October 19, 2020
“Why are we learning about monuments in Paris?” [dropcap]L[/dropcap]ast year, when a student asked French teacher Sarah Finck this question midway through their unit on Parisian culture, she instinctively thought, “Challenging, but fair question.” She then went on to explain that if her students...
You’re not alone: Impact of COVID around the globe
By Christine Hinckley, Middle College High School
October 19, 2020
If you cough in public now, everyone will look at you. Ever since coronavirus hit the world, our lives have changed. From the way we shop to our living situation, COVID-19 has affected our lives greatly. But you're not the only person dealing with this tough time. There is a world around us. A world...
Students Create Clothing Business Amid Pandemic
By Carter Van Buskirk, Marquette High School
October 16, 2020
With the emergence of COVID-19, many students have had extra time to pursue other hobbies and interests. For two students, the spare time provoked a jump start to entrepreneurship and business experience. Alex Hohlen, junior, and Christian Springer, junior, are the co-founders of Shop Prep STL. The...
What Do Your Teachers Think of Distance Learning?
By Cedrik von Briel, Woodside High School - CA
October 15, 2020
It has now been six weeks since the start of the 2020/21 school year, and for the first time in Woodside High School’s 60+ year history, that first month has been conducted from home for most Woodside students and teachers. Since the novel coronavirus caused the Sequoia Union High School District...
Amanda Taylor’s Unplug Collective: Bringing Black Women Together
By Kate Sibery, The Masters School
October 14, 2020
Nike Women launched a new activewear collaboration in late September that seeks to empower black women and people across the gender spectrum. The post announcing the collaboration to their 7.5 million followers on Nike Women’s Instagram featured the CEO of their campaign collaborator, Masters’ alumna Amanda Taylor ‘18. Taylor founded Unplug Collective j...
Alumna advocates for students with disabilities
By Daniel De Beer, The American School in London
October 14, 2020
According to the Public and Commercial Services Union, around a third of disabled adults reported that they felt they were spending too much time alone as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. However, Cameron Lynch (’19), a sophomore at William & Mary who is diagnosed with a form of muscular d...
It’s called Discord, but the instant messaging app has actually done more uniting during COVID-19 pandemic
By Elijah Jhee, Sunny Hills High School
October 14, 2020
During a time when face-to-face interaction and social gatherings with peers seem impossible because of COVID-19 health and safety issues, students like senior Quinn Cassidy only need to boot up their computers or smartphones and launch a single application to connect with friends. No, it’s not...
Rocking the vote by wearing the “vote.”
By Wingspan Staff, Liberty High School - TX
October 14, 2020
Inspired by the social studies department at Lebanon Trail High School, the social studies department on campus is wearing "Vote." T-shirts every Tuesday leading up to Election Day on Nov. 3. Hear what each teacher has to say about voting by clicking on a dot. This story was originally published ...
Digital Learning: The Difference Between Synchronous and Asynchronous Learning
By Isabel Crespo, Jesuit High School
October 14, 2020
With digital learning becoming the new reality for students due to COVID-19, administrators and teachers have developed new and innovative ways to conduct learning. Online learning can be categorized into three learning styles: synchronous, asynchronous, and a hybrid of the two. At Jesuit High...
School in the Time of COVID-19
By Amelie de Leon, Woodside High School - CA
October 14, 2020
The new school year has begun for students across the world in recent weeks. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they return to circumstances they have never seen before. The Paw Print reached out to students in Spain, Japan, and Kyrgyzstan to find out how these countries are handling school in these unprecedented...
Forster stretches for new opportunities as a yoga instructor
By Lindsay Ruhl, Henry W. Grady High School
October 14, 2020
Senior Avery Forster discovered yoga when she was 16 as a way to relieve stress while building strength. Forster recently became a yoga teacher at Highland Yoga, which has locations in Buckhead, Decatur, Reynoldstown and Virginia-Highland. She is one of the youngest to ever complete a teacher training...
A call for sustainability at BSM
By Megan Cornell, Benilde-St. Margaret's School
October 14, 2020
As the climate deteriorates, the call for sustainability is being sounded louder than ever. Increased frequency and longevity of natural disasters, uptick in disease, unpredictable weather patterns, depletion of water sources, and a surge in hunger are all imminent effects of climate change. To combat...
“It brings back the old days where nothing really mattered”: Whitman students crave nostalgia over quarantine
By Quentin Corpuel, Walt Whitman High School
October 14, 2020
In the back of Topher Leonard’s bedroom, the echoes of Fall Out Boy pour out of an old radio. The then nine-year-old Leonard sits hunched over at his desk, fixated on his iPad. He’s playing Minecraft, the three-dimensional adventure game that has taken the gaming community by storm. The outside world...
Kidding around about online school
By Madelynn Niles, McCallum High School
October 14, 2020
If third-grader Jackson Baugh was the host of his Zoom classes, he would mute everyone forever and ever and open the chat whenever he wanted. “That would make online school much better,” he said, and his little brother Nate couldn’t help but agree. “First grade is harder than kinder...
In-Depth: Voices of Black Students Enduring Racism, Inequity
By Lauren Pickett, Marquette High School
October 13, 2020
Sepo Chuunga, junior, was shattered. Footage of summer protests and uprisings made her nervous and desperate. She imagined her father and brothers embodying hashtags—victims of police brutality. Following the killings of unarmed Black Americans such as George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, Chuunga became...
Mid-Autumn Festival in mid-quarantine: A new moon of challenges
By Christy Yu, Lynbrook High School - CA
October 13, 2020
In a traditional Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival celebration, also known as zhong qiu jie or the Moon Festival, family members who live apart gather together around the dinner table, eat mooncakes and moon gaze, called shang yue in Chinese. However, with the new norm of social distancing, many families had ...
An in-depth look at the lives and experiences of female firefighters in Northern California
By Alice Simenstad, Sir Francis Drake High School
October 13, 2020
Roughly 4% of American career firefighters are women, according to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). While the fire service is male-dominated, many women across Northern California are working hard to show that gender does not define capability. As many know, a career in fire is di...
Tiana Day strives for a more equitable future
By Daniela Wise, Shruthi Narayanan, and Shereen Ahmed
October 13, 2020
The Black Lives Matter movement started marches across the country, made national headlines and positively changed the political backdrop of the United States, immediately following the death of George Floyd at the hands of a white police officer, Derek Chauvin. Protests were held and petitions were...
Two MSMS students publish books over summer break
By Kate McElhinney, The Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science
October 13, 2020
While the COVID-19 pandemic kept most students from fulfilling their summer plans, junior Raeed Kabir and senior Shanay Desai wrote and published their own books. Kabir wrote a self-teaching AP Chemistry Prep book, while Desai published an introductory research guide. Kabir’s book, available on...
Concert band in the era of coronavirus
By Isabella Zinchini, Walnut Hills High School
October 13, 2020
WHHS’s band department has been working nonstop since the outbreak of COVID-19 to find new innovative ways of learning in a virtual environment as well as preparing for a hybrid style of learning. But what exactly will this look like? Band directors Richard Canter, Andrew Peoples and Edward LeBorgne...
Atiwa jewelry charms customers worldwide
By Nil Özdemir, Walt Whitman High School
October 13, 2020
After moving to Bethesda, seniors Esther Ferrero and Lucia Kaiser were often showered in compliments from peers on their style. “Esther had an elegant and unique style which definitely caught my eye,” junior Giulia Baroldi said. “It was very different from the rest.” But after the two would...
Creating a community: The Porch At Christie’s
By Phoebe Miller '23, Staples High School
October 12, 2020
Giving back to the community was always something that Andrea and Bill Percoiello loved to do. After opening a bakery in Norwalk, where students with disabilities learned how to make pastries and work together to build their self-esteem, the Percoiello’s began to look for a place where they could serve...
Quick thinking saves the day
By Shreya Jagan, Liberty High School - TX
October 12, 2020
21 days. It’s been 21 days since freshman Carsten Swallow potentially saved someone’s life. September 17 was just another normal day for Carsten as he sat in his 2B class expecting to learn Spanish. That’s when a student had a sudden medical emergency. “My whole class was in the middle...
Sophomore forms nationwide community outreach program to deliver soothing music video performances for the elderly during COVID-19 pandemic
By Minjeong Kim, Sunny Hills High School
October 12, 2020
Sophomore Lauren Pak still remembers the day she was inspired by her community service idea of delivering video recordings of teenagers playing soothing music to the elderly at local and national nursing homes. Pak’s first year at Sunny Hills was ending in May, and she knew she would find herself ...
Testing, testing: a history of the SAT
By Renee Ge, Lynbrook High School - CA
October 12, 2020
School closures. Canceled SATs. Test-optional or test-blind college applications. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, standardized testing was ubiquitous to the high school experience — millions of students took the SAT and ACT, which were administered nearly monthly, each year. However, the pandemic halted...
The STEM Stigma Among High School Girls
By Maddie Glaum, Academy of the Holy Names
October 9, 2020
Girls can do it… right? Thankfully, the social disparity between men and women is not as prominent today as it once was. In every societal aspect, there is a push to level the playing field between the two sexes in entertainment, sports, positions of power, and the workplace, to name a few — and...
The Impact of COVID-19 on CUSD Custodians
By Isabella Bernabeo, Sage Creek High School
October 8, 2020
As coronavirus swept through the United States, the world’s “new normal” was kindled. On March 13, life as mankind knew it was changed. The strike of COVID-19 has re-constructed society and the standard lifestyle. Students’ homes were invaded with academia while teachers’ living-rooms became...
How AV civics classes are covering the presidential debates
By Sonali Carumbaya, Amador Valley High School
October 8, 2020
The internet is currently rampant with analysis of the presidential debates. And the discussion is being furthered in AVHS classrooms. Civics teachers are encouraging their students to watch the debates, incentivizing them with live discussions and extra-credit assignments. “In our class, we...