- 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
![English teacher Erin Fluchel poses with the camera she uses during sessions. Fluchel experimented with other types of photography but decided that she preferred family moments most. “[Photographing a wedding] was stressful. It was a long day that I was away from my kids. I felt like I was capturing more of the stage moments and not the spontaneous stuff that I love doing. I'm glad that I tried these things, but it wasn't for me. Again, it was less about connection and more about getting perfect things,” Fluchel said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/SNAPSHOTS-OF-LIFE-900x600.png)
![Posing for a picture, seniors Claire Folkins and Lauren Beach wear their handmade hoodies from their small business @sundaymorning_stl. Folkins and Beach knew their target market and saw the opportunities from starting their own business. “We want [our customers] to feel like they are living like their Pinterest board,” Folkins said. “We found a way to make the sweatshirts many teens want, affordable and customizable which is different from a professional online shop.”](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/IMG_8526-e1643036953518-900x735.jpg)
![Spending their seventh hour in the cafeteria Jan. 6, juniors Matthew Feng, Sangarshan Kumar, Michael Feng, Govind Menon, Om Shinde, Samarth Samal and Bennett Christofferson join a Zoom with their teacher to get help with their assigned work. Their teacher assigned a packet with lecture notes, guided problems and self-check problems and opened a Zoom room during class hours to ensure students were supported. “For some people, school is the only place they feel safe. On the other hand, we’re also in the biggest COVID-19 spike [of cases] right now. Both sides have ups and downs,” Samal said. “I personally am fine with staying in school as long as it doesn't interfere with my learning too much because I'm vaccinated and I wear my mask properly. If I can cover the content by myself with my teacher available on Zoom, I'm flexible with any option.”](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Sub-Shortage-Red-900x600.jpg)
![Principal Jeremy Mitchell measures the distance between desks to aid in contact tracing. After measuring the desks, Mitchell gave the information to Assistant Principal Kate Piffel, who used seating charts to determine close contacts. “Dr. Mitchell measures the desks to see how far apart they are because if they are within six feet [there is a] 98% chance that those students are going to have to quarantine if they're that close to another student,” Piffel said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/DSC_0011-900x600.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)
![Two of Pathfinder’s most recent editorial accolades shine on display in journalism teacher Lindsey Katz’s room. Pathfinder was recognized as a SNO Distinguished Site on April 24. “Praise isn’t everything, but it feels so nice to see the hard work of our staff recognized. So much more than just writing words on a page occurs [in journalism], and I am so glad people see that. I love being surrounded by such talented writers, but also such great people,” editor-in-chief and junior Payton Dean said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/DSC_4941-300x200.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)
![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)