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
Adding a base to their acidic liquid to complete a titration, juniors Mazz Siddiqui and Sofia Wu successfully neutralized the liquid. They did the math to find the molarity of the mixture. “The labs were the most interesting [part of chemistry] because I stood up and did something innovative,” Wu said. “The math [was sometimes challenging because it] needed to be correct in a chain reaction; you needed the first question to be right to do the next one right.”

Photo of the Week – Feb. 10

Elle Rotter, Deputy Conceptual Editor-in-Chief • February 10, 2023

Fine-tuning his masterpiece, junior Jeff Bakers uses mineral spirits to help develop more detail in painting. Baker's favorite work from this semester was painting still-life objects including a chair, skates and fruit. “My teacher inspired me to do better because at first I wasn’t going to try in this class, but she influenced me to try harder [in my artwork],” Baker said. “This class was a lot harder, a lot more [work] than I expected.”

Photo of the Week – Dec. 9

Elle Rotter, Deputy Conceptual Editor-in-Chief • December 9, 2022

During the 54th annual graduation commencement ceremony at St. Charles Family Arena, principal Jeremy Mitchell applauds cum laude students' academic achievement. Mitchell has been the principal at West High for the past 12 years and plans to retire after the 21-22 school year ends. “Kids are good. I get irritated by news reports and friends [who say,] ‘Oh, I couldn’t do it, how do you put up with those high schoolers?’ Are you kidding me? I mean, you guys are great. Anytime I doubt that something happens, and boom. So I think that's the lesson that has been verified and reinforced year after year,” Mitchell said. “It's fun because I have my own children, and when I'm with those kids, it's kind of the same thing. I just think the teenage years are really interesting. That's why I work here. I’ve been going to school since 1978, and it's just so fun to see the growth in students. So I think my life lesson is learned from that enjoyment.”

Photo of the Week – May 27

Madi Michajliczenko, Conceptual Editor-in-Chief • May 27, 2022

Dancing in the cafeteria, sophomore Dominic Lewarne freestyles during second lunch on Tuesday, May 10. Seniors lined the walls as Lewarne performed to “Skechers” by DripReport and Katy Perry’s “Last Friday Night.” “I liked to dance because it was my favorite thing to do,” Lewarne said. “[Although] it was nerve-wrecking because there [was] a lot of people there, it was pretty fun [since] people were hyping me up.”

Photo of the Week — May 13

Kristen Skordos, Staff Writer • May 13, 2022

Working on a terrarium, sophomore Joe Cunningham studies ecology in Honors Biology 2 class. The students constructed the terrariums the class period before but spent the hour cleaning them before they sealed it. “I loved how [Mr. Cutelli] created engaging activities so we could learn the content without getting bored. Worksheets have a place in the classroom, but lessons that involve only worksheets tend to lead to less participation from the class,” Cunningham said.

Photo of the Week — May 6

Achyuta Ambal, Staff Writer • May 6, 2022

Surrounded by a cooler, a basket and a piano bench, freshman Matt Willock holds a NASCAR tire filled with his school supplies. As a part of spirit week, students were encouraged on Wednesday to bring in “anything but a backpack,” to carry their belongings around in for the day. “I feel like the whole NASCAR tire idea was like a statement of my personality. [My dad] was the one that originally kind of gave me the idea to do it. It's been sitting in my room for a little bit and we were looking for stuff to use,” Willock said. “I feel like since this was kind of the first time [for ‘anything but a backpack day’], we were working out what's good to bring, but I feel like if we do it next year, it'll be a lot better. There'll be a lot more variety to what people bring.”

Photo of the Week – March 11

Mira Nalbandian, Managing Editor-in-Chief • March 11, 2022

Supporting her team from the sidelines at the 47th Annual Girls State Meet on Feb. 18, sophomore Alli VanValkenburgh holds the swim and dive flag proudly in the air. The team won the 400 free relay, securing 1st place in the state. “I was super proud,” VanValkenburgh said. “My sister [Megan] had just swam the last event of her high school career and it was [beyond] fun to watch. It has [also] been super fun watching everyone improve and grow this season.”

Photo of the Week – Feb. 25

Katie Wallace, Staff Writer • February 25, 2022

Junior Cameron Chandler dances to “Congratulations” by Post Malone and Quavo for poms senior night Feb. 17. In order to calm their nerves, the poms team had a group huddle and boosted each other’s confidence before the performance. “This is by far one of my favorite years on the team yet, we are closer than we have ever been. We just build each other up and support each other everyday. Leaving this season will not be easy,” Chandler said. “Performing for senior night was really special. We all love Claire [LeDuc] so much and just wanted to do so well for her. I think we worked the most on this dance than any other one because of how special this was for her. We each share a different bond with her that is just really special. We still have two more performances and a competition and it's already extremely hard to think about her not dancing with us next year after becoming so close these past three years.”

Photo of the Week – Feb. 17

Addie Gleason, Managing Editor-in-Chief • February 17, 2022

Juniors Dossan Bell and Brayden Gilmore participate in a mock trial. The trial took place as part of the final exam in Nancy Sachtleben's seventh hour Crime and Law class. "My favorite thing about Mock trials was finding the little cracks in the defendant or prosecutor’s statements," Dossan said. "I like this because I was able to totally unwind the opposite sides statement and by doing this I made a statement have no value and disproved it."

Photo of the Week – Jan. 14

Sarah Boland, Staff Writer • January 14, 2022

Scooping up pumpkin muffins, junior Rainier Neuwirth-Deutsch practices baking in Prostart One. Neuwirth-Deutsch enjoyed making friends with his kitchen group and making jokes as they worked together. “I wanted to have an apron that showed who I was and some things I love. The camera is because I like photography, the remote controller is because I like video games, a spaceship because I love space and astronomy and dinosaurs because they are my favorite animals,” Neuwirth-Deutsch said.

Photo of the Week – Nov. 12

Addie Gleason, Managing Editor-in-Chief • November 12, 2021

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