- 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
![Wearing heavy Roman armor and holding a chief, senior Nick Cook talks to eighth graders about the Latin program at West High. Latin teacher Tom Herpel offered Cook the opportunity. “I had some of the students dressed up in tunics, [and Cook] was in Roman armor. I had them walking around giving flyers to people with general information about Latin, as well as allowing them to talk to kids and give a play-by-play of what we do in class,” Herpel said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/DSC_5386-2-1200x800.jpg)
![Kicking off dress rehearsal, Mr. Longhorn contestant and senior Carson Hughes goes over the group routine alongside other competitors. With just two days of practice, all participants learned the entirety of their introductory dance, chose an occupation to embody and crafted skits for the show. “The best part of this [whole thing] was learning the dance and just practicing with the guys. We [have to] try not to laugh the whole time, but we're having a lot of fun,” Hughes said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/IMG_5112-1-e1732164157549-1200x812.jpg)
![“My family always [put] it in my ear that I really should be a teacher. Two of my sisters are teachers, and I’ve always [enjoyed] explaining [a range of topics]. A place I was working [at] in the health field shut down, and my mom was like, ‘it’s a sign [that] you need to go back to school to get your master’s in education,’ and so I applied at Maryville. I’m proud of my mom. She’s sort of a scrappy person, who is also a good mother and managed to raise us girls while being pretty politically active. My personal value of hard work [is something that matters most to me]. I’m a hard worker [and] I value that in other people. It’s important to me to give it your all, do your best, prepare, and work. I think my students expect to be perfect all the time, but [in reality,] you’re at school to practice and to get better, not to be an expert [from square one]. I feel like [students] sometimes value results rather than respecting themselves for their work. Work hard and be satisfied.” - Sally Steininger, Science](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/KellyS_SteiningerS1-Sage-Kelly-1200x801.jpg)
![“[With teaching,] It's very hard to know what you need until you start teaching. But I would say [that] just knowing students are typically doing their best [is the most important factor]. Many of the behaviors you might [recognize] are indications of not understanding [the lesson], or feeling that they're not confident in the class. Knowing that, I think [this mindset] would’ve helped me from the beginning instead of this adversarial type of situation that a lot of teachers might feel going [into teaching]. [It's important to know] that things get easier as you teach because you add more tools to your toolbox as you go. And the more tools you have, the more engaging your classes [will be] and the better feedback you can give [to your] students.” - Sonya McGowin, Spanish](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Sonya-Mcgowin-Staff-1200x800.jpg)
![For the past three years, Parkway has administered high school finals after winter break, a practice that proves to be detrimental to the success as well as the mental health of students. With finals after break appearing to do more harm than good, the question of what changes can be made arises time and time again. “The pressure for finals is difficult, and to have that [pressure for] a few weeks because you're on [a] break can make you generally sad. It's a bummer in general. I wish [finals] were before break, so we [could] have a break to sleep, celebrate and not study. Everyone I've talked to about it is like 'yeah, finals sucks,' and I wish that wasn't a thing,” junior Meadow Kostial said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/decembereditorial-1200x963.jpg)
![“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](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/jessicaverweyst-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)
![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)