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The Official Student News Site of Parkway West High

Pathfinder

The Official Student News Site of Parkway West High

Pathfinder

The Official Student News Site of Parkway West High

Pathfinder

After the Tree of Life synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh Saturday morning, Jewish Student Union member seniors Lexie Bratton and Derek Isle discuss their emotions with Rabbi Yitzchak Staum. Students shared their disbelief for the fact that antisemitism still exists in 2018. “We can respond with kindness to the hate by educating others,” Bratton said. “The majority of hate stems from lack of knowledge, and through JSU and other programs we hope to educate our peers to stop the hate.”

Jewish Student Union strives to create a welcoming community

Susie Seidel, Convergence Media Editor November 1, 2018

With goals to create a safe place for students of all different religions and cultural backgrounds, the Jewish Student Union (JSU) was started this year. The formation of JSU was initially implemented...

Speaking to the crowd, Libertarian Party Larry Kirk shares his positions and ideas. Kirk and Cort VanOstran participated in the Parkway School District Student-Hosted Candidate Forum. Photo by Kirk Campaign

The role of a third party in modern America

Zaven Nalbandian, STAFF WRITER October 25, 2018

Since 1948, no declared presidential candidate from a third party has received a single electoral vote in the electoral college. At the Parkway School District Student-Sponsored Candidate Forum, Libertarian...

Candidate Cort VanOstran addresses the crowd during the Student-Sponsored Candidate Forum Oct. 22. Of the four candidates, Democrat VanOstran and Libertarian Larry Kirk were the only two to attend. "Whatever your political view is I definitely think it's important that you are able to learn about and get to know the people you are voting for or who represent you," junior and co-planner Sabrina Bohn said.

Students take charge in Student-Sponsored Candidate Forum

Carly Anderson, Conceptual Editor-in-Chief October 22, 2018

With nearly three months of planning behind them, students involved in organizing and executing the Parkway Student-Sponsored Candidate forum have put together a meeting for Oct. 22 at 7 p.m. in the Parkway...

Senior Yasmine Abdulla talks to senior Vannia Ung about future plans for the Asian Appreciation Association. AAA celebrates the different holidays that its members are familiar with. “Surprisingly most of these holidays fall on the day of the meeting,” Abdulla said. “The plan is to bring food related to that [holiday].”

Students start Asian Appreciation Association to spread awareness for the Asian culture

Peyton Gaskill, STAFF WRITER October 19, 2018

The Asian Appreciation Association brings together a group of students every other Wednesday to celebrate Asian food, holidays and culture. Founded by seniors Sianna Xu, Vannia Ung and Maddie Cooke, the...

A visitor rings the doorbell as the sign above her tells her what she should expect during the check-in process. Visitors require an identification card and a purpose for the visit in order to be able to check in. “It is a hassle, it’s not as easy to enter the building, but what we have found is that most people are aware of the world that we live in and are willing to spend the extra time,” Mitchell said.

Parkway implements new check-in protocol in effort to keep students safe

Lydia Roseman, News and Sports Editor October 15, 2018

While waiting for the vote for Prop S on the November ballot, administration has incorporated new security measures that run background checks on every visitor that enters the building. “It used to...

With his father watching, junior Matthew Hopper attaches a plaque to his bench commemorating the life of Brynn Haun at the senior night ceremony for the girls’ tennis team Sept. 20. Hopper chose to create the bench for his Eagle Scout Service Project. “I’ve learned a bunch of stuff from Boy Scouts,” Hopper said. “From living out in the wilderness by yourself to being a better leader, helping younger people, helping older people, just being a better person, you learn life skills.”

Junior Matthew Hopper honors Brynn Haun through Eagle Scout project

Tyler Kinzy, Managing Editor-in-Chief October 10, 2018

Junior Matthew Hopper paid tribute to his late friend he knew since elementary school by constructing a bench outside the tennis courts in Brynn Haun’s memory. As Hopper searched for potential Eagle...

Taking a break from recording, junior Andrew Jolly and senior Ali Yumuk laugh while working on their debut album “Up To No Good Volume 1.” The album is made up of eight original rap songs available on SoundCloud and Spotify. “Being together in a studio and recording together is a lot better than recording on your own in your own studio and then sending it to them,” Jolly said. “It gives you a much greater connection because you’re both part of the atmosphere of the album, and you’re a part of all the songs, even if you don’t have a part in them. Being in the studio with people is a such a tight knit feeling.”

Junior Andrew Jolly and senior Ali Yumuk release debut rap album

Lydia Roseman, News and Sports Editor October 8, 2018

Sparked by a shared interest in music and their favorite rapper Logic, senior Ali Yumuk and junior Andrew Jolly, wrote, recorded and produced their own rap album. After meeting for the first time,...

Friends, family and teachers shared that Chris’ smile was one of their favorite things about him. “He had the best smile in the world,” 2017 senior class principal Beth Middendorf said. “I actually told his mom that the other day, that his smile is what I’m going to miss most about him. He definitely brightened my day with his smile.”

Remembering alumnus Chris Hanson

Sabrina Bohn, Managing Editor-in-Chief October 5, 2018

Described by his friends, family and teachers as kindhearted and optimistic, alumnus Chris Hanson passed away Sept. 28 in a car crash. A graduate of the class of 2017, Chris planned to attend technical...

Using the latte machine, Blue Brew crew member and junior Pierce Burns prepares an order for a customer. The crew members and Marketing II students are learning from and adapting to the wants of the students. “Some people may have noticed our new straws. We wanted to get away from Community [Coffee’s] straws and use paper ones, which was a request, because it is more environmentally friendly,” Burns said.

Blue Brew off to a strong start

Claire Smout, AWARDS COORDINATOR October 3, 2018

After surveying student opinions, executing a week-long soft opening in the spring and working on improvements, Blue Brew officially launched Aug. 20. Located in the main lobby and open from 6:40 to...

Juniors Rithvik Karthikeyan and Connor Olliff arrange trophies in the debate classroom after school Sept. 24. Olliff hopes that by replacing trophies with random objects, the team can best honor alumni Haran Kumar. "We’ve had to think about how we can better remember one of our graduates, and we want to hold [the tournament] in his honor," Olliff said. "We’re trying a lot harder to make it perfect this year so it’s in perfect remembrance of him."

Speech and debate team honors Haran Kumar through tournament

Kathryn McAuliffe, Managing Editor-in-Chief October 2, 2018

Alumni Haran Kumar’s legacy will be integrated into the first speech and debate Eastern Missouri invitational tournament, hosted at Parkway West Oct. 12 and 13. “We want to live the things that...