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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

Eyes tracing his book, freshman Auggie Prsha works to translate a passage in Latin teacher Tom Herpel's classroom. Prsha decided to take Latin after hearing about the fun classroom activities, but he quickly began to see the effects of learning a foreign language in the world around him too. “Sometimes in English class, I can [recognize] some Latin words, and I notice Latin in other places [as well]. I enjoy the people [and] learning from Herpel,” Prsha said.

The melting pot: English dominance and its effects on society

Sage Kelly, Staff Writer September 27, 2024

The spread of English has its roots in 17th-century British colonialism and imperialism. As the language of the British Empire, history’s largest group of states, colonies and territories under one power,...

Spanish teacher Jessica Verweyest stands in front of her Hispanic-themed classroom, decorated to show her love for the culture. Verweyest fell in love with the Spanish language through her  travels to various Hispanic countries after high school. “I lived in Colombia over one summer, and then I received a scholarship through the Youth Rotary Club to live in Ecuador as a gap year. Those immersive experiences encouraged me to continue to speak Spanish. In Ecuador, I had the opportunity to do some volunteer work. I worked with an underprivileged group of children between the ages of five and 15 to teach them English. That opened my eyes to the difficulties of communication and turned me to wanting to teach Spanish,” Verweyst said.

Flashback Friday: Spanish teacher Jessica Verweyst

Sakenah Lajkem, Staff writer February 23, 2024

What school did you go to? I went to Edgar Road Elementary School in the Webster Groves School District. Then, I went to Steger Sixth Grade Center, Hixson Middle School and Webster Groves High School.  How...

“I love working with students. I love seeing ‘aha moments’ [from my students] and when things click. I enjoy offering study opportunities or travel opportunities specifically. I'm really eager to take students on trips, especially Spanish-speaking communities to see them interact in a real-world scenario with native people. The hardest part of teaching is its crazy political. There are a lot of agendas that get pushed in school and it frustrates me because it shouldn't be about agendas, administration, and politics. It should be about students and their learning and providing the best environment so sometimes it is like a dual-sided coin.” - Jessica Verweyst, Spanish

Jessica Verweyst, Spanish

Raneem Hussein, Staff Writer August 29, 2023

Principal John McCabe and Junior class Principal Mario Pupillo stand by the cafeteria door during lunch supervising. McCabe or another administrator monitors during every lunch period. “It’s stressful, but it’s also rewarding because we have such a great student body, and they’re mostly sitting here enjoying themselves and their lunch,” McCabe said.

New Year, New West

Sabrina Urdaneta, Staff Writer October 14, 2022

After Principal John McCabe took the reins, he craved the spirit of a larger school. He began by prioritizing school safety.  “I don't want to change a lot of stuff, but certain things are really...

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Jessica Verweyst