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
Throughout the year, the Pathfinder has welcomed an excellent addition of new stories to our site. Certain stories have especially caught viewers’ and writers’ eyes: take a look at this year’s extraordinary articles in the 2023-2024 Pathfinder Wrapped.

2023-2024 Pathfinder Wrapped

Pathfinder Editorial Board • May 30, 2024

All good things must eventually come to an end, and as the 2023-2024 school year finally draws its curtains closed, students reflect on all the memories that they forged this year. Likewise, it’s time...

Debate diaries: A vlog journey

Sravya Reddy Guda and Triya Gudipati • March 20, 2024

Follow the Speech and Debate team’s journey to Rock Bridge High School in Columbia, Missouri. They compete at their first overnight tournament following the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Students’ favorite songs from the Korean, Bengali, Vietnamese, Russian, Tamil and Farsi languages.

Six MORE songs for your international playlist

Sravya Reddy Guda, Staff Writer • January 29, 2024

Cultural diversity traces its roots across West High, featuring students fluent in Korean to Bengali to Farsi. There is no shortage of foreign customs in the halls that surround us. With that, welcome...

Smiling widely, senior Dana Zafarani embraces English teacher and contest organizer Andria Benmuvhar after being announced as West’s 2024 Poetry Out Loud champion. Zafarani will represent West at the regional competition in February. “I’ve done Poetry Out Loud for the last two years. I’m a senior now, so I want to make it count,” Zafarani said.

Lines and rhymes

Serena Liu, Editor-in-Chief • January 17, 2024

On Wednesday, 12 students performed in the 2024 Poetry Out Loud School Competition in the library. They delivered a wide range of poems, both contemporary and historical, memorized from Poetry Out...

Senior Dana Zafarani poses in paint reading “Women, Life, Freedom” and “#BarayeAzadi” as a protest against the Iranian government. The experiences of Iranian women inspired Zafarani to assist in any effort to protect women’s rights. “The world should live in peace. Every woman deserves to be equal. Every woman deserves love [and] kindness,” Zafarani said.

Woman, Life, Freedom

Will Gonsior, Opinions/A&E Editor • November 14, 2023

An oppressive republic On Sept. 16, 2022, Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini passed away in custody of the Iranian government. Amini had been arrested three days earlier for improperly wearing her hijab. Although...

Cultural appropriation is being called out in mass media and online, but the line between appropriation and appreciation can often be hard to identify. Recently, Asianfishing and Westernization have become more acknowledged by the media, but it’s important to understand exactly why they are harmful. “Cultural appropriation can give [people] the wrong concept of [certain] cultures. They’re seeing what the American media perceives these [cultures] to be, and a lot of times that’s not [what] it [is],” sophomore Anu Pidikiti said.

The Fine Line

Nidhi Pejathaya, Staff Writer • December 8, 2022

Blackface. "Spirit animals." Kimonos. In today’s day and age, cultural appropriation — the adoption of one aspect of a culture from another, often disrespecting the original culture — is something...

At the end of the first act of the fall play ‘Silent Sky,’ Henrietta Leavitt played by senior Nicole [Blue] Schade, receives an important message from Williamina Fleming, played by junior Dana Zafarani. Schade described the script as beautiful and heartfelt and said that they have a lot to learn from their character. “I loved getting to help the audience see how beautiful this world is because that’s what Henrietta’s core belief was; she had so much wonder for the world. I related to that, and it was an honor to be the one to tell that story, and make the audience feel that same sense of wonder.”

Photo of the Week – Nov. 4

Elle Rotter, Deputy Conceptual Editor-in-Chief • November 4, 2022

The poster for Parkway West Dramatics Company's performance of "Silent Sky." Students in the cast and crew of the production rehearsed and worked for two months leading up to the performances. "Everybody in the cast and crew is challenged in some way [during the play], and being able to see the final product of [hard work] and having the audience watch it is so cool," theatre department teacher and play director Amie Gossett said.

The shining stars of ‘Silent Sky’

Elizabeth Franklin, Editor-in-Chief • October 31, 2022

A sparkling sky of stars lights the theater as a trilling piano melody ascends into the aisles of a dark theater, the spirit of anticipation and wonder imbuing a hushed crowd. Five actors, a director and...