- June 5On to the next
- May 22The fun in finance
- May 22Photo of the Week - May 22
- May 22Spring in action: A look into West's 2026 spring sports season
- May 21French en route
- May 19Sarah Johnson
- May 19Crime, class and consequence
- May 18Athletes of West - Alexander Berryhill
- May 15What Happens Next
- May 15An empty table
![“I started [cheering] 10 years [ago and] I would do camps as a kid. I really like cheering at ‘Friday night lights’ [football games] and getting the student section hyped up. Tryouts were really stressful because my sports overlapped each other so I spent a lot of time at home practicing. Learning the material took four days, and then [the] actual tryouts were only maybe an hour [long. My favorite memory] from the season so far is my first Friday night lights game. [Cheer has taught me] that hard work pays off and I'd [tell someone who’s considering trying out] that it's really fun if you put in the work. You need to believe that you can do good and if you put in the work, then [the results] will turn out better than you expect.”- Emily Jordan, 10](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/DSC_6874-Payton-Dean-1200x798.jpg)
![“I have been playing football for a long time and have enjoyed it. This year especially, I had so much fun. I was very happy when I made varsity because freshmen don't usually make the team [their first year of high school.] I love being around the guys [on the team] and I am going to miss the senior [mentors] next year. I will never forget the impact the seniors and Coach Duncan had on me. It was not only a team, it was a family. I felt like I belonged.” - Ethan Bain, 9](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/IMG_7636-1200x800.jpeg)
![“I’m proud of being a captain of the varsity football team. I've always wanted to be a really good football player, especially after we win a football game. I don't know what makes football so special to me, but I’ve played it my whole life. There's just something [special] about being on a football team. It's just not like any other sport. Everyone has to do their part [in being a part of the team]. There's no one that can be a standout player and just carry a team to victory. Everybody has to be one team. My dad is really important. He knows a lot about football and helps me. He also just keeps me in-check and so I work hard for him. There is a golf tournament fundraiser coming up for him to raise more money. He has ALS so he is in a wheelchair and it's basically just trying to make up money to help [him with his condition]. My friends are also a big part of my life. They're just always there for me when I need them. I feel like it [applies] for me too. Whenever I tore my ACL they were so kind to me. It helped me feel better. Last year's second game of football season was when I tore my ACL, and now I'm totally good. I mean, it definitely had setbacks, but I feel like I came back strong.” - Carson Rakers, 12](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/pasted-image-0.png)
![On Friday, a night full of celebration kicked off in a flood of green in honor of former 2023 graduate Jaydon Woodall. Athletics director Jeff Taggart took the night as a moment to reflect on Woodall and the impact he made. “The fact that we have that option to bring more awareness to [organ donation] and how we can save somebody else's life down the road, to the idea of being an organ donor like [Woodall] is worth everything. Coming together as a community says a lot about how much he means to us,” Taggart said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/image1-1200x800.png)
![Before beginning their college football journey, alumni Ja’Marion Wayne and Tre Bell smile after one of their final rides together. The athletes kept in contact and encouraged and inspired each other along their new paths. “I miss everything about high school football. I wish I had another year to play with [alumni] Ja’marion Wayne, Seth Young, Tyree Simms and [senior] Phillip Jordan and [junior] Trent Livingston. I miss all of my guys and playing in front of a student section where you know every kid. It isn’t something you get in college,” Bell said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/uno-e1668799318454.jpeg)
![Supporting his team, senior and cornerback Cameron Jehling (40, second from the left) keeps his eye on a kickoff play. Jehling felt more confident about his plays compared to his performance the previous year. “Most people think that to be a good football player, you have to go to the gym, but there’s a famous quote I use for both football and baseball that shows [otherwise]. My coach first told me, ‘a sport is 90% mental, 10% physical.’ I tried this year to be better about the mental aspect of the game instead of the physical,” Jehling said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/DSC_0183-900x600.jpg)
![Clutching the ball on a quarterback run, junior Joseph Federer hustles on the field, attempting to score a touchdown. As a child, Federer grew up watching football. “An NFL player who inspires me is [quarterback] Kyler Murray. He is a very accurate quarterback and can also make tremendous plays with his feet,” Federer said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/DSC_0358-1-900x600.jpg)
![The narrow lens contrasts with a diverse reality; whitewashing means altering or concealing something to make it more appealing to white people. The word “whitewashed” as it is used today has caused identity crises for thousands, if not millions, of students. “I have been called whitewashed before, and it feels very sad. [It’s] just hard because it makes me not know who I am. You don’t get a lot of backlash for [saying it], so I think it’s a throwaway term for people who aren’t affected by it. When you are the person [who] is being called whitewashed, over time, it builds up,” sophomore Raaga Golla said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/IMG_5740-1-300x200.jpg)
![There are more than 20 open cardio machines at Crunch Fitness. I enjoyed the spacious environment at Crunch, a sentiment that was shared by sophomore Sanjana Daggubati. “[Going to] Crunch Fitness was the right decision because [it] feels more professional. Crunch’s workers are laid back, but not to the point where they don't care,” Daggubati said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/IMG_5242-1-300x225.jpg)
![Discarded to the side, Kansas City Chiefs and St. Louis Rams merchandise sits in a trash can after the two National Football League (NFL) teams left the state of Missouri. Both the National Hockey League’s (NHL) St.Louis Blues and Major League Baseball’s (MLB) St. Louis Cardinals, two other Missouri professional sports teams, have been in the city since their developments in 1967 and 1882, respectively. “St. Louis fans are incredibly loyal, judging by [the MLB’s] Cardinals and [the NHL’s] Blues. Team owners on the whole, not so much, judging by the [National Football League’s] Rams. This is more a function of ownership and profit than fan loyalty,” government teacher and football coach Melvin Trotier said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/DSC5875-2-300x225.jpg)
![Carefully holding a young athlete's face, senior Elizabeth Knott works at the face painting station in Victory Village. The Victory Village, located in the North Gym, served as a space for athletes to engage in multiple independent tasks. “I like to volunteer [and] interact with all different kinds of people [and] helping them have a fun experience. There was a little boy who asked me if I could [draw] a character from a game he liked [and] I was able to look it up and draw that character for him,” Knott said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/DSC9290-1-Enhanced-NR-1-300x200.jpg)
![Setting up the activity for his first meeting, Financial Literacy Club founder and sophomore Yash Bandiananthaiah writes on the whiteboard. For the first meeting, Bandiananthaiah created an interactive experience for members to immerse themselves in. “To me, the most important thing during a meeting is to make sure we are all engaged and participating, and [I do this by] always making sure we have a hands-on activity,” Bandiananthaiah said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/DSC5306-1200x798.jpg)
![Hand raised into the air, senior Lauren Anstrom watches as her graduation cap flies along with the caps of all her peers. Anstrom hopes to leave behind the legacy as someone who was kind, hardworking, and always supportive of others. “Tossing my graduation cap honestly felt surreal. In that moment, everything hit me at once with all the excitement, relief and a little sadness too. It felt really emotional [because] this was the end of such a big chapter of my life, but also exciting knowing that everyone was about to start a completely new journey,” Anstrom said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/DSC_3031-Enhanced-NR-2-1200x800.jpg)
![French teacher Blair Hopkins enters City Coffee & Creperie in Clayton, Mo. for breakfast with her Honors French 4 students and AP French 5 students. Both classes went on a field trip to a fair trade chocolate factory in St. Louis to begin their unit on Côte D’Ivoire, a major producer of cocoa beans. “My ideal school would just be the Magic School Bus — you would always learn about things by going someplace and learning hands-on, being able to see it yourself and asking people questions. I think [learning is] always so much more memorable if you can experience it firsthand,” Hopkins said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/DSC2795-1200x798.jpg)