It was the moment everyone was waiting for: the big reveal of the 2015 Prom King and Queen. Four junior couples and four senior couples awaited on stage to see who among the eight would be crowned.
Seniors Joe Guccione and Hannah Benoski participate in the first dance, a tradition for the winners of Prom King and Queen.
Seniors Jack Griffin and Joe Guccione were both awarded crowns after an announcement was made that there had been a tie in the votes.
“We thought, ‘Why re-vote when it could be another way to honor an additional student?’ At first we had no idea what to do because both Joe Guccione and Jack Griffin had the exact same number of votes, but the student body voted and we kept the outcome exactly how we got it,” Activities Director Brian Kessler said.
Both men were hopeful to win the crown, but neither were sure they would be king, let alone knew that there would be two winners.
Senior Jack Griffin stands in front of the Prom attendees after receiving his crown as co-Prom King.
“Of course a part of me wanted to win. I’ve been Mr. Spirit and Mr. Longhorn, and I’ve been on homecoming court so really what more could I ask for? I thought Jack deserved to win, so being able to share the title with him was so exciting and surreal,” Guccione said.
When the two men received their crowns, members of the dance applauded and gave a standing ovation for their 2015 kings.
“The whole time I was nervous and when they called my name I was speechless. It made me so happy to have the support from my friends and family. I just had so many emotions during the dance,” Griffin said.
Senior class principal Dr. Jenn Sebold was also proud to have two members share the crown with each other.
“I knew before the dance that there was a tie and I talked to Kessler about what we should do. I think we definitely made the right decision to keep them both as winners,” Sebold said. “Joe and Jack winning together was more powerful and I think the outcome was the best it could’ve been.”
![Adding a tray of canned corn to the pile, junior Michael Collop assists in transporting donations for the Holiday Food Drive. The event, hosted schoolwide from Dec. 10-17, raised over 5,000 food items to deliver to the Parkway Food Pantry, helping several families in need. "[The drive] is a great thing for us to do because you're giving to those who are less fortunate, and it helps provide for people who can't provide for themselves. [The] competition is always fun, too. It was fun to be in [social studies teacher Jeff] Chazen’s class, because he always gets worked up over [the competition]. He made it exciting, and was always convincing us to turn in cans for the drive,” Collop said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/feature-photo-unsung-2.png)
![Principal John McCabe announces that Jeffrey Chazen has won Teacher of the Year. Chazen was discussing freedom of speech with his AP Government class when the door opened and administrators rushed in. “[I was] extremely happy and humbled, but mostly shock[ed]. I've been here longer than any other teacher, so I know most of the people on the list of Teachers of the Year, and they are amazing teachers themselves,” Chazen said. “It's just nice to be on the list with them, including [social studies teacher Kristen] Collins, who is the only other social studies teacher who has won Teacher of the Year. It was nice to bring something back to the social studies department.”](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/DSC_0021-1-2-1200x801.jpg)
![Striking a pose following their group dance, the 2024 Mr. Longhorn contestants welcome their audience to the show. Throughout the night, the nine competitors participated in an occupational section, skits for the talent portion and a fashion attire show before finalists were interviewed. “It's a fun time getting to hang out with my friends and doing [our] acts. I think I'm most excited for my performance with [seniors Bart Connors, Gavin Hamlin and Colin Hughes]. I like that I get to dance a little bit. I don't think I'm very good, but I'm gonna try my best to put on a show,” contestant and senior Henry Wild said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/DSC_9759-1200x798.jpg)
![Kicking off dress rehearsal, Mr. Longhorn contestant and senior Carson Hughes goes over the group routine alongside other competitors. With just two days of practice, all participants learned the entirety of their introductory dance, chose an occupation to embody and crafted skits for the show. “The best part of this [whole thing] was learning the dance and just practicing with the guys. We [have to] try not to laugh the whole time, but we're having a lot of fun,” Hughes said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/IMG_5112-1-e1732164157549-1200x812.jpg)
![Blending together a concoction for a science experiment, science teacher Joel Anderson scares his students by bringing excitement and thrill into his classroom for his annual Halloween show. It took about six weeks for Anderson to set up his classroom for the show. “It’s pure terror. I came up with this idea a couple decades ago to do something fun for Halloween. So I pretend to be this mad scientist [that creates] a Frankenstein-like creature [with the class], learning a little bit of science along the way and [then ending] with a laser show. It’s just for fun; entertainment value,” Anderson said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/DSC_0021.JPG_-1200x800.jpg)
![Standing with girls cross country team mascot Pump the pumpkin, senior Sydney Etchason laughs with her teammates. Before the team’s senior night, Etchason undertook an odyssey to recover the pumpkin, which had been stolen by boys cross country. “We went through practice, and then a little birdie told me that it was in [senior] Emmett [Vernon's] car. I [offered Vernon] $50 to give us our pumpkin back, and we got Pump back,” Etchason said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/DSC_0002-1-1200x800.jpg)
![Within the U.S., the busiest shopping period of the year is Cyber Week, the time from Thanksgiving through Black Friday and Cyber Monday. This year, shoppers spent $13.3 billion on Cyber Monday, which is a 7.3% year-over-year increase from 2023. “When I was younger, I would always be out with my mom getting Christmas gifts or just shopping in general. Now, as she has gotten older, I've noticed [that almost] every day, I'll open the front door and there's three packages that my mom has ordered. Part of that is she just doesn't always have the time to go to a store for 30 minutes to an hour, but the other part is when she gets bored, she has easy access to [shopping],” junior Grace Garetson said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/DSC_0249.JPG-1200x801.jpg)
![Complex global supply chains supply the goods for everyday luxuries, such as the coffee at West High’s Blue Brew. Low tariffs enabled much of the prosperity of modern history. “Higher tariffs lead to higher costs. A tariff is a tax on an imported good, and someone has to pay for that tax, and typically that [will] end up impacting consumers,” economics teacher Rachel Money said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Flag-1.png)
![Eyes glued to his sheet music, senior Andrew Gillies accompanies the Jazz Band as the pianist. During the annual Winter Jazz Concert, Gillies was chosen to improvise a solo during the song, “T.J. Boogie.” ¨I love concerts [because of] how the audience reacts, and just the stage lights [shining on me],¨ Gillies said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/DSC_3774-1200x801.jpg)
![Junior TJ Polack plays his saxophone solo at halftime for the 2024 marching band show, ‘Coloring Book.’ This year, Polack was one of two soloists in the marching band. “[Polack] is very hard on himself. [His saxophone solo] sounds amazing [and] everyone [cheers] for him; [still], somehow, he thinks it’s a bad performance and he's down. What he does is not easy. It takes a lot of confidence as a person [and] a lot of musical skill to be expressive, and he's doing an amazing job,” drum major and senior Dominic Perez said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/462488499_2973926416100522_5057718068659607183_n-1200x925.jpg)
![Senior Sally Peters stands in the history hallway, contemplating her choices in the 2024 United States and Missouri elections on Nov. 5. As a member of Diplomacy Club, Peters has discussed key candidates and issues in contemporary American politics. “[As students], we're starting to become adults. We're realizing how much the policies that are enforced and the laws that make it through the House and Senate are starting to affect us. [Opportunities such as] AP [U.S.Government] and Diplomacy Club [make elections feel] a lot more real,” Diplomacy Club vice president and senior Nidhisha Pejathaya said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Flag-1-1.png)
