PHOTO ILLUSTRATION: ELI GRAVES, JOSIE WIELAND, ISAAC LOTHROP
New to WSSD? Here’s what you need to know about us.
We’re glad you’re here. Keep us quirky.
Editorial Board
TheunsignededitorialrepresentstheopinionoftheEditorialBoard,whichconsistsofthemajorityofstudenteditorialstafflistedonthispage. Dear Dr. Johnston,
We are writing to introduce ourselves to you. First, you should know what drives Haven.
We are a school that values the arts (just look at Haven’s band), a place that brings people together, but we have always been a school without labels.
Music teacher Mr. John Shankweiler, who worked at the school since the merging of the Swarthmore and Nether Providence High Schools before retiring in June 2024, reminded us of the spirit of Haven.
“Can I just say, I hope Haven keeps its unique characteristics?” he said.
involved many students are in school. It is also the passion of students who aren’t afraid of speaking their minds at public school board meetings.
Students, parents, teachers, staff— everyone deserves to have a say in what happens to the district we care about so much. That’s how you’ll succeed. Take time to get to know us.
Quirks are our culture. We need you to help us continue celebrating them to keep the culture we value so much alive.
“Not playing to the masses but embracing the individual uniqueness of every student. If we lose our character, we lose what makes us special. We are a little bizarre, and we love it.”
That spirit that Shankweiler talks about doesn’t just live in the chorus room or a gym, it’s everywhere around us; it’s the quirks that make our community unique.
So, as our new superintendent, we ask this: keep us bizarre.
If you walk around Haven’s hallways, you’ll stumble on not just geometry proofs but professions of love from Shakespeare reenactments, the constant smell of biscuits from the cooking classroom, or a whole hallway decorated for the winter hallway concert.
Those quirks are our culture. We need you to help us continue celebrating them to keep the culture we value so much alive.
But the most important quirk is how
Don’t implement plans that chug along at full speed for a year or two, then sputter out as other obligations get in the way. Come up with plans that work not just for the community, but with the community. Then, instead of dragging us along, it will be a collaborative effort.
Haven mixes a strange dose of curiosity and thoughtfulness to make one of the most lively communities you’ll ever encounter.
It’s the nature of block scheduling, fifth block, and various after-school programs that create a sense of community that is unmatched everywhere else. The extra hour after school allows students to form stronger connections with their teachers and students and makes music class accessible to all.
Those passions are abundant at Haven. According to music teacher Mr. Nicholas Pignataro’s weekly band notes, 40% of our athletes play a musical instrument. Our girls soccer team won the PIAA 3A state championship, and our Hi-Q team recently won a national championship. Whether a budding scientist, varsity athlete, or dedicated musician (or a
Take Five:
What are some of the places around the WSSD community that stand out to you?
Leaf ‘28
“I like the NPE playground because NPE is the place to be! There are slides, there’s basketball, there’s hopscotch, and I think there’s four square. There’s a field. It’s epic.”
“I [like] Springfield Mall. I’m a senior on my driver’s license, and I remember when I was an underclassman, it was this destination where I’d have to walk a million miles to get there.”
“I like Media and all the Media restaurants. My friends and I will usually go there if we’re going out. Also, Swarthmore, the area with those restaurants and little shops, was a big part of middle school for me. We used to go there all the time.”
combination of them all), Haven students inspire inside and outside the classroom. However, the dedication of everyone at Strath Haven is what makes us truly stand out. Our teachers care deeply about the well-being of their students, and it shows. They consistently show up for us and work so hard to ensure we’re getting a quality education.
It’s the advocacy from all areas—from students to parents to staff—that makes our community so unique. So when you’re making district schedules, ask teachers and students for their input.
So many people want their voices to be heard. We have a diverse community that deserves to have every voice heard. So ask yourself: How can I use those voices to make thoughtful decisions? How can I help bring Haven together?
We’ve had a long period of uncertainty here. Since the current seniors started high school fresh off of COVID, they will have had three superintendents by the time they graduate, as well as three principals.
We’re looking for stability and some refocusing; clarity is found best with multiple perspectives. This is the exciting part—our world is constantly changing, and Haven needs someone who can preserve our values and move with the times.
It’s a delicate balance, because as proud as we can be of our school, there’s still many issues that need to be addressed. We are excited to hear your perspective, and turn to a new beginning. Hopefully, you will soon be a fixture in our passionate, creative community.
Go Panthers!*
“I really like going out to get food with my friends, so I like Wawa, either in Ridley or the two places in Media. I also like to hang out at the Co-op and Renatos in Swarthmore, and I like to go to the Springfield Mall.”
“I love the Henderson field in Swarthmore because it’s fun to run around and feel like we’re little kids again. I also love going to the SRS playground. You get to reminisce about your childhood and have fun. We don’t do that much in high school.”*
REPORT CARD
Bb f a+ a-
PRE-ACT (FROM OUR SOPHOMORE EDITORS)
+ Easier than PSAT.
+ Got to skip first block!
- (Almost) everyone hates the science section.
SPRING IS HERE
+ Away with seasonal depression!
- Went from freezing to blazing real quick, whiplash goes crazy.
- Allergies. Need we say more?
FEELING OF IMPENDING DOOM (AP TESTS)
- AHHHH.
- AHHHHHHHHHH.
- AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.
WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS
+ Thoughtfully organized.
+ Lowkey, I think I needed that break in my day.
+ Felt much better afterwards. 10/10.
SPRING BREAK
+ Freedom tastes so sweet.
- Did you know that a lot of other states have two weeks of spring break?
- Not long enough.
About The Panther Press is the student-run publication of Strath Haven High School in Wallingford, PA. The Panther Press publishes 500 copies bimonthly in print and is distributed to classrooms and students at Strath Haven High School. The publication is also online at www.shpantherpress.com.
The goals of The Panther Press are to inform, educate, and entertain the student body, faculty and staff, and community readers.
We strive to report and analyze issues that concern students in a manner that is fair, objective, responsible, and accurate.
Through the use of journalism, technology, and workplace skills, the students who lead and create the newspaper develop as critical thinkers and communicators.
All content published in the newspaper and on the Panther Press website is created by Strath Haven students for a primary audience of students, with the understanding that our publication also reaches a broader audience that includes teachers and staff, families, and community members.
The views represented in The Panther Press, as well as the selection and curation of content by the editors, do not represent the views of the entire Panther Press staff, the adviser, the school, or the administration.
Please consult the ABOUT page on our website for additional information.
Submissions
All Strath Haven students are welcome to learn the basics of journalism and become contributors to The Panther Press. Interested students should join the Schoology group to learn about upcoming meetings and training sessions.
Letters to the editor are encouraged. Any reader may submit a letter to the editor via email to strathhavenpantherpress@gmail.com. Anonymous letters will not be published. Editors reserve the right to contact letter writers or edit submissions for reasons of space or clarity.
Our staff also welcomes feedback in the comments section of The Panther Press online or via our social media. Each comment is subject to review by a student editor with support from the adviser. Online commenters on our website must have a verified email address, and comments are reviewed for defamation, profanity, obscenity, libel, and invasion of privacy. Not all comments are published.
Bylines
All contributors are listed in the bylines of stories that appear in print and online. Photography, graphics, art, illustrations, and other creative work will be given attribution. Unsigned editorials, when published, feature the byline of the Editorial Board Social Media
The Panther Press maintains social media accounts on Facebook, Twitter (@shpantherpress) and Instagram (@shpantherpress). The editors-in-chief, managing editor for web, and social media editor manage the social media accounts in consultation with the adviser. We encourage community members to follow us on social media for online posting and discussion of student news.
Our staff members do their best to ensure that social media content is accurate and verified. Any inaccurate information will be corrected with corrections acknowledged.
Social media participants should remember that anything posted in response to The Panther Press social media is public and reflects on our publication, our school, and the poster. Replies and comments will be screened for defamation, profanity, or libel.
Editors in Chief Evelynn Lin ’25 Matteo Ventresca ’25
Managing Editor, Web Matthew Ramirez ’26
Managing Editor, Print Kaitlyn
Editors
Jaxon Klaus ‘25
Kathryn Kudrick ’27
Ellie Cole ’26
Kai Kzaplicki ‘28
Dyllan
Reporter
Joya Denninger ’28
Incoming superintendent greets students
Dr. Russell Johnston shared a letter to The Panther Press as an introduction to the student body.
Dear Strath Haven High School Students,
Thank you for providing me with this opportunity to write to you as the new Superintendent of the Wallingford-Swarthmore School District (WSSD). I am honored and excited to serve in this role, and you, as students, will always be my highest priority. This short letter is just the start of our connection, and I look forward to getting to know you both in and out of the classroom in the weeks and months ahead.
I come to this amazing school district with more than 30 years of experience as an educator and leader. I am proud to have been a teacher and administrator and to have successfully led a district similar in size to WSSD as superintendent. For the past 11 years, I was a leader at the state education agency in Massachusetts, where I further expanded my knowledge and skills in public education. I am excited to have the opportunity to use what I have learned throughout my career to advance equity, excellence, and opportunity for all students of WSSD.
Of equal importance, I believe I also bring the personal attributes that are desired for this position. As noted in the December issue of the Panther Press, while a strong background as an educator and leader is essential, the new superintendent’s personal attributes seem to be of particular importance to Strath Haven students. Students describe their hope for a caring and kind person who is willing to be
Dr. Johnston’s five-year contract begins May 1, 2025.
“To purposefully include the voices of Strath Haven students in decision making, I will launch a Superintendent’s Student Advisory Council at the beginning of next school year, and I want to hear from you this spring on how we can make this council as impactful as possible.”
Dr. Russell Johnston
Incoming Superintendent
a decision maker and who is well-connected and engaged with the school and community. I am confident that I bring those specific personal attributes to this position, and I will use them to build strong, trusting, and resilient relationships with you and the entire WSSD community.
To purposefully include the voices of Strath Haven students in decision making, I will launch a Superintendent’s Student Advisory Council at the beginning of next school year, and I want to hear from you this spring on how we can make this council as impactful as possible. Hearing directly from students is vital to my decision-making as superintendent, as I know that through this type of engagement, we can enhance learning experiences for all students.
I am excited to meet you in the classroom, at school events, and learn more about what makes Strath Haven High School such an amazing place. I look forward to connecting with you soon.
Best regards, Russell Johnston, PhD *
Haven ranks among top 20 PA public schools in online rankings
With high marks for academics and teachers, lower scores for food and resources, Haven stands in 17th place statewide.
Matteo Ventresca ’25 Editor-in-Chief
Haven earned a spot in the top 20 public high schools in Pennsylvania, ranking 17th in the latest Niche rankings.
According to Patch.com, Haven ranked 10th in 2023. In 2024, Haven fell to 18th. This year, Haven managed to take one place back.
Niche is an online platform that seeks to help parents and students find schools and areas to live in that best fit their wants and needs.
“No other platform gives more time and attention to collecting and cleaning data than Niche. Our data analysts are dedicated to constantly reevaluating the data we collect to make certain our stats are up-to-date, accurate, and complete,” a Niche representative stated in an email.
Niche uses many factors to determine its rankings, including academics, culture and diversity, parent and student surveys, teachers, clubs and activities, resources and facilities, and sports. The most influential factor in the ranking is academics, weighing 60 percent.
“You get a certain element of response bias, The people who are going to respond to any survey are people who feel really strongly about something one way or the other.”
Mr. Andrew Benzing Principal
Haven received an overall Niche grade of an A. While the highest grade was an A+ for Haven’s teachers, the lowest grades were a C for resources and facilities and a C+ for Haven’s food.
“Our teachers, academics, clubs and activities, these are all high scores, which makes a lot of sense to me. [It] resonates with me,” Principal Mr. Andrew Benzing said. “The food, that’s kind of funny,
but [I’ve heard] it’s been amazing. The chef is trying a bunch of new things here recently, so that was kind of intriguing to me.”
These scores are based on information from the U.S. Department of Education and other available data.
Surveys from students and parents play a role in each category, according to Niche’s methodology page.
“The Best Public High Schools ranking is based on rigorous analysis of academic and student life data from the U.S. Department of Education, along with test scores, college data, and ratings collected from millions of Niche users,” a Niche representative stated.
While Benzing acknowledged the importance of the survey data, he also expressed concern that it could skew the rankings.
“You get a certain element of response bias,” he said. “The people who are going to respond to any survey are people who
feel really strongly about something one way or the other. So, is this a true measure of what we’re doing well and not?”
Niche claims there is “no direct pathway to improving a school’s ranking.”
According to Niche, if schools want to increase their ranking, they have to score better in Niche’s scoring categories.
“It is based on a compilation of individual grades, which are then used to determine the ranking relative to other schools,” a Niche representative stated. “Without any changes in other schools’ performance, the way to increase a school’s ranking is to outperform surrounding schools in our scoring categories.”
Benzing is satisfied with the ranking but believes there are more important things than Niche rankings, like graduation rates and student growth.
“I would like to have 100 percent of the senior class graduate,” Benzing said. That seems like a reasonable expectation, and if we’re not reaching that, what more can we do as an education staff? We really value kids and getting them to grow from A to B, and sometimes this stuff runs against that.”
HAVEN RANKS HIGH • The front entrance to the high school shines in the sun and in the rankings. Haven was recently ranked 17th in the 2025 Best Public High schools in Pennsylvania. PHOTO: MATTEO VENTRESCA
IMAGE: WSSD.ORG
Students navigate news fatigue and misinformation
Through a constant stream of news, students rise to active roles in their community to take action.
Kaitlyn Ho ’26 Managing Editor of Print
“Alie can travel halfway across the world while the truth is putting on its boots.”
This common saying is true now more than ever, according to Interim Executive Director of the National Association for Media Literacy Education (NAMLE) Donnell Prost.
News is everywhere. It’s on social media, passed around by word of mouth, on your television screen—and misinformation is flourishing because of it.
Junior Minori Saito has felt exhausted from constantly fact-checking negative news. For example, America is a world leader in school shootings, something so common that Haven practices monthly lockdown drills in preparation.
“[Lockdown drills] are a vague testament to the fact that terrible things are happening in this country all the time, and we’re exposed to them, so naturally, we’re a lot less sensitive to violent things like shootings,” Saito said.
For people who feel detached from national news, Prost says they are not alone. This detachment and apathy can be a major reason why people avoid getting involved in politics, according to an article by Pew Research Center.
“If you think about how diverse our communities are, and the fact that 99% of the stories are not going to get out on national news, because it can only do
so much, those are all of the stories and voices and experiences that we’re not hearing, right?” Prost said. “And that is what’s so important about media. If you don’t have any direct experience with someone, someplace, something, how do you know about it?”
To combat news fatigue and misinformation, consuming media responsibly is essential.
“We’re not asking people to arrive at a conclusion about information or about content or about what they want to think or feel or say about something,” Prost said.
“It’s more about just having that critical eye and being able to reflect on your own media use.”
Saito shields herself from desensitization by staying in touch with her values and beliefs. She tries to avoid news on social media and focuses on news articles instead.
“Taking moments to sit with myself and really process everything that I see or everything that I’m feeling in the moment, just knowing myself and being in touch with my emotions sort of keeps my humanity,” Saito said.
To resist “rage-baiting” news, Prost emphasizes the importance of crossreferencing multiple sources to get the most accurate information. She believes that taking care of your mental wellbeing in digital spaces should be prioritized.
Seasonal Affective Disorder:
More than just ‘winter blues’
Weather changes can impact your mood. Science is involved.
Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a mental disorder caused by the changes in daylight hours that occur when the seasons change. Millions of Americans are estimated to have some form of SAD.
The disorder is characterized by increased sleep and drowsiness, social withdrawal, grouchiness, anxiety, feelings of guilt and hopelessness, and trouble thinking clearly, among many others. Winter-pattern (also known as fall-onset), a form of SAD, is the more common of the two forms. It begins in late fall and early winter and ends in spring. Summer pattern (also known as spring-onset) is the less common of the two, beginning in late spring and early summer and ending in fall.
Though the idea of summer lifting your “seasonal depression” has a psychological backbone, Seasonal Affective Disorder is a real disorder, requiring a real diagnosis.
Part of the scientific reason behind SAD is that the body’s circadian rhythm changes with the seasons. Your circadian rhythm is your body’s 24-hour clock—when your body gets into a rhythm. Your circadian rhythm is the reason you start getting hungry around the same time every day, need to use the bathroom at the same time of day, and wake up around the same time.
“What happens with seasonal affective disorder and the circadian rhythm is that the change in the amount of sunlight of the day affects your circadian rhythm,” social studies and AP Psychology teacher Mrs. Amanda Lawson said. “Your circadian rhythm also releases hormones at certain times of the day… so, when the sunlight changes, that changes the release of those hormones.”
When seasons change, a main difference is
“Understanding if you are constantly being outraged or saddened by the media you’re consuming, it’s time to kind of take stock of that and say: Why? What am I consuming that’s giving me this feeling?” she said.
Senior Olivia HeiseyTerrell deals with news fatigue by working to make a difference. She is a junior council member for the Delaware County Council.
According to a survey of 333 high school students Heisey-Terrell helped to write through junior council, 85.1 percent of kids get their information from social media, and 20.2 perecnt follow the news every day.
want or maybe want to be more involved in government, according to the junior council’s survey.
“I try to avoid [news] on social media when I can. But if you’re informed of something, and you know you can do something about it, you’ve got to do it.”
Olivia Heisey-Terrell ’25
So why aren’t more students getting involved? It has something to do with the disconnect between internal political efficacy, which is the belief that you are capable of policy participation, and external political efficacy, which is the belief that the government will respond to participation.
“It seems like people have a lot of internal efficacy skills,”
Changing focus from national to local has been the key for students working to make a difference. Heisey-Terrell encourages more students to get involved in their community, whether through work at food pantries or applying for junior council membership.
“I turned off the news notifications on my phone,” Heisey-Terrell said. “I try to avoid it on social media when I can. But if you’re informed of something, and you know you can do something about it, you’ve got to do it.”
77.4 percent of students in Haven’s area
people’s change in sunlight intake, along with the change in the timing of sunset and sunrise. Moreover, with SAD, a person’s circadian rhythm loses alignment with the outside environment, causing differences between what your body interprets internally versus what is actually happening externally.
“I think that the sun makes you happier because it's brighter out and it's warmer and the flowers are outside… when it's dark and rainy, then you're just like, ‘Oh, it feels bad,’” sophomore Kathryn Kudrick said. “When you're out in the sun… You get serotonin from the sun.”
The specific factor behind a possible change in mood during the changing of seasons is the release of the neurotransmitter serotonin. Exposure to sunlight interacts with the eye's retina, which triggers the release of serotonin in the brain. People with SAD release lower levels of serotonin, which affects an individual’s mood and sleep. Additionally, the change in the timing of sunrise disrupts the release of melatonin, a hormone that helps you go to sleep.
Though the idea of summer lifting your “seasonal depression,” a phenomenon many people may feel during the changing of seasons, has a psychological backbone, SAD itself is a real disorder, requiring a real diagnosis.
“We're all more tired and we're all sadder in the winter months, but to say you have SAD, that's a real diagnosis that people need to get, that’s probably more severe than what most people think it is,” Lawson said.*
NEWS IN BRIEF
Heisey-Terrell said. “They do have opinions, like we’ve seen on the survey, about the direction our country’s headed, some political issues, but they aren’t involved in the more external efficacy stuff.”
Prost feels that her job allows her to create positive change, which helps her combat news fatigue.
“I think that’s part of how we got in this situation that we’re currently in is a lot of apathy and a lot of poor media literacy skills,” Prost said. “But also, we do need to get the people in the door who are not in the door, because we can’t all do it by ourselves.”*
Crozer Health plans to cease operations
Delaware County’s largest health network is shutting down, as announced to its employees on April 21, due to financial struggles. The closure will impact thousands of workers across eight facilities. Varsity Arts Awards brings community together
Students from all creative corners of Haven gathered on April 24 to celebrate their artistic talents for the annual Varsity Arts Awards. Teachers nominate individuals for their achievements and dedication in the arts.
Dance Haven performance set to stun
Dancers will twirl across the stage on Friday, May 2 at 7 p.m. in the auditorium. The Dance Haven spring showcase will feature various styles and comedy sketches from student choreographers and is completely free to see.
Spring Fling celebrates variety of student life
On Friday, April 25, students gathered on the middle school blacktop for Spring Fling at 4 p.m. Several clubs ran tables with sweet treats and crafts. The week leading up to the event also included fun, themed spirit days.
Jabberwocky bursts into classrooms, performs sonnets
On Monday, April 29, Jabberwocky members dressed up to deliver kazoo tunes and sonnets to lucky recipients during classes. Either template or custom-written sonnets could be purchased during lunches as a fundraiser for the literary magazine during the week of April 21-25.
Band members apply for 2025-2026 leadership positions
During April, students signed up for interviews and filled out Google Form applications for next year’s marching band leadership team. The list was revealed to students on April 25 and went public on April 28.
USC Speak Your Mind ice bucket challenge trend spreads around community
During spring break, many Haven students participated in the USC Speak Your Mind Ice Bucket Challenge. The trend made its way around the country as students dumped water on themselves and nominated others to complete the challenge. The University of South Carolina first took on the trend in 2014, and recently picked it up again to spread awareness for mental illnesses.*
Niche 2025 Top Public High Schools in
Faculty, student leadership team launches first set of Wellness Wednesdays
Lunchtime events planned in hopes for students to try something new and build connections and community.
Evelynn Lin ’25 Editor-in-Chief
Acrowd starts to form around a series of tables located off to the side of the cafeteria. Hands grab smoothies, and chatter commences as students talk with people, providing informational tables on social media and healthy lifestyle habits.
Meanwhile, students mindfully color sheets of paper advocating kindness culture and practice Qigong in a serene atmosphere.
In the gym, students can be heard participating in trivia or heavily breathing in attempts to complete a workout.
Wellness Wednesdays took place on April 9, April 23, and April 30 throughout all lunches. Staff members ran different activities in various locations throughout the school.
In preparing the Wellness Wednesdays, Assistant Principal Mr. Tom McLaughlin, MTSS secondary coach Ms. Morgan Segal, and social studies teacher on special assignment Ms. Alissa Harvey coordinated what activities the Wellness Wednesdays would offer—with input from the Panther Student Leadership team helping to develop their plans.
“We reached out to staff members because a lot of them have special interests,” Harvey said. “The idea was to make authentic connections with the staff in terms of finding and sharing a common interest. We also asked around, so we were able to connect with St. Joe’s and the Rotary Club.”
According to Segal, two things inspired the idea for Wellness Wednesdays: a successful all-day faculty wellness day last year and mixed success in providing informational slideshows to students for social and emotional learning (SEL).
Niche 2025 Top 20 Public High Schools PA
The April Wellness Wednesdays did not come without challenges. Spacing, timing, availability, and incentivizing students to participate were factors that needed to be considered.
“We looked at three Wednesdays in April prior to the starting of AP testing, things that would really occupy kids and we’re like, ‘Hey man, let’s just give this a try,’” McLaughlin said. “We’ll get some feedback from the students, we’re looking for feedback, like ‘that was good, that stunk. This was fun. I like this, more opportunity for this.’”
According to McLaughlin, the wellness events aim to build students’ high school experiences and open them up to new, useful interests.
“If we can give you your toolbox of things you refer back to when you’re stressed out, or when you’re bored or things you want to try, if we can put more things in that toolbox when you leave here, you’re more well rounded,” McLaughlin said. “I feel like that’s our job.”
The first Wellness Wednesday took place on April 9, consisting of activities like mindful coloring, health trivia, completing exercises, and Qigong. For senior Michael Moretti, participating in Qigong with several of his peers was a notable experience.
“It definitely cleared my mind,” Moretti said. “Especially as graduation is coming up, now I know that I can do these stretches to clear my mind and return myself to a center. It’ll definitely help lose distress.”
Down in the back of the cafeteria, tables shared information on social media and healthy relationships, and healthy smoothies were provided. Junior Lilah
Santore spoke with Communications & Community Relations Liaison Ms. Rachel Riley, who ran a social media detox information table.
“She asked me how often I was on my phone,” Santore said. “I told her that I have a screen time limit that controls how much I’m on my phone and apparently it’s a lot, and my screen time’s a lot better than most people’s.”
If a student participates in a Wellness Wednesday activity, they receive a ticket for a raffle. Prizes can include swag and gift cards to local and chain businesses.
“I got two tickets and I turned them in for the Pinocchio’s raffle,” Santore said. “I hope I win because then I can get fries, because I love [their] fries.”
If the Wellness Wednesdays are successful, Harvey and Segal hope to bring it back again next year with more frequent activities during lunch.
“We’re having about seven or eight activities per day,” Segal said. “I think in a perfect world, it would be if we had one to two presenters for the month of January, one to two for the month of February… so If you like yoga, this month we’re going to have a yoga session during your lunch and the following month, we’re going to have a mindfulness meditation session.”
Harvey and Segal hope the April Wellness Wednesdays leave students with takeaways.
“I just hope they walk away saying like, ‘Wow, that was fun,’ or ‘Wow, I learned something new,’” Harvey said. “Hopefully they have fun with it and then big, big goals that would make us really happy is if something stuck with you long-term.”*
AP students offer study tips for upcoming exams
As May approaches, students of all grades and experience have already started preparing and making study plans.
Darcey
Strachan ’28
Reporter
Since the start of the school year, students have worked tirelessly in their classes. In May, many will be tested on their knowledge through AP exams.
Haven offers 28 AP courses, according to the school profile. The profile notes that 442 students—about 38% of the student body—took 863 AP exams in 2024. Over 80 percent of students earned a 3 or higher.
For many juniors and seniors, and even some sophomores and freshmen, this is their first time taking an AP exam. As a result, many are worried that they will be unprepared. Students who have taken AP tests in the past, however, have learned important study skills and tricks.
“I think starting to make practice materials earlier is important because it’s less added stress when I’m actually trying to study,” junior Ainsley Sullivan said.
studying outside of class.
“I think I’ll be mostly prepared for AP Seminar studying in class, so I probably won’t do much studying outside of class for that,” junior Maisie Strachan said.
“But for AP Environmental Science and AP Calc, I’ll probably start studying a few weeks before.”
Many students may also study differently depending on which semester they took the class. Taking an AP in the fall compared to taking it in the spring can change the way you study immensely.
“I think starting to make practice materials earlier is important because it’s less added stress when I’m actually trying to study.”
Ainsley Sullivan ’26
Along with gathering necessary study materials ahead of time, students should also give themselves adequate time to study.
“I’m probably going to start studying earlier, because last year it was mostly just the week before,” junior Sofia Tsetseni said.
Students may be studying differently or devoting different amounts of time to studying depending on which class. Some classes involve more in-class preparation, while others rely more on students
“If you’re taking it in the fall, I would start making practice materials while you’re taking the class because a big break can make information harder to recall,” Sullivan said.
First-time AP takers may feel stressed or overwhelmed when taking them.
“A lot of upperclassmen told me to try not to get overwhelmed with the APs because they’re really not as bad as people make them seem,” sophomore Brendan Hogg said. Students may feel unprepared to take AP exams, but Strachan offers advice for taking and worrying about upcoming exams.
“The exams are pretty much the stuff that we do in class,” Strachan said. “The actual exam itself isn’t necessarily super difficult, and you really don’t have to be super prepared for them either. You don’t have to know everything to do good.”*
MENTAL REFRESHER • Senior Michael Moretti attempts a Qigong pose during Wellness Wednesday activities on Wednesday, April 9. PHOTO: EVELYNN LIN
THE STUDY NEVER STOPS • Students slump over the desk preparing to their upcoming tests. As AP exam season approaches, many students will look just like the ones in the photo. PHOTO: DARCEY STRACHAN
SOCIAL CHECK-IN • Juniors Melanie Foca and Lilah Santore speak with Ms. Rachel Riley about their phone screen time. PHOTO: EVELYNN LIN
District installs new bus cameras
New initiative uses technology to catch drivers who ignore school bus stop signs.
Matteo Ventresca ’25 Editor-in-Chief
Think twice before ignoring a school bus stop sign. Your next mistake might be caught on camera.
The Wallingford-Swarthmore School District and BusPatrol reached an agreement for a new School Bus Stop Arm Enforcement Program, hoping to catch violators who endanger students by ignoring bus stop signs.
The addition of the cameras includes four cameras for all 43 buses the district owns: two on the side with the stop sign, one above them, and one at the back of the bus. The cameras use artificial intelligence to capture the violation.
“There’s AI technology in the camera that’s on the side of the bus that will capture any vehicles passing the bus only when the red lights are activated,” Supervisor of Transportation Alison Sload said. “If you run up to a bus and the yellow lights are on, the AI is not detecting anything at the moment. It’s only detecting it if the lights are red.”
Bus Safety Program Grant.
“[$25] goes to the school bus safety program grant,” Sload said. “$25 of the ticket goes to local law enforcement to pay them for their time. Then, the rest of the ticket is used to pay for the equipment installed on the buses. So once that is paid for, the district will get a certain percent, and BusPatrol takes a certain percent. So, it is free, at no cost to the school district whatsoever.”
“There’s really no other way to catch people besides having the bus driver write down the license plate. So cameras make people accountable for their actions.”
Samuel McDonough ’26
When the AI captures a violation, it sends a notification to BusPatrol, which will then put all the information into a package and send it to local law enforcement for review. Neither the district nor BusPatrol reviews the footage.
“It will have a video, pictures, or anything pertaining to the incident that it captured, and then once that is all put together, it gets sent to local law enforcement,” Sload said. “So, depending on where the car ran the red lights, it will go to that police department. So then they have to review it.”
After law enforcement reviews the package, they have to decide whether it is a punishable offense. If they determine there was a violation, it goes back to BusPatrol, who will send the ticket to the driver. Running the bus stop sign costs violators $300.
The installation of the cameras was completely free, according to Sload. Every $300 fine gets split between BusPatrol, law enforcement, the district, and the School
February was the first month the cameras were monitored for their data. Sload receives a notification at the end of each month, including all the month’s data. She receives the number of violations, where they occur, which bus they occur on, the times, what days of the week they occur, and which police department was notified.
According to Sload, the cameras caught 94 violations in February, out of which 73 instances were ticketed.
“Mallard Mill Run was the top location for violations, Bus 12 had the most violators that ran the reds, and then most of the violations occurred between three and four in the afternoon, which is when we’re picking up our elementary school students,” Sload said. “That’s the worst time because they’re little guys, not paying attention.”
Junior Samuel McDonough takes the 2:05 p.m. bus home every day. He sees the cameras as an effective way to get people to stop running the bus stop signs and keep kids safe.
“There’s really no other way to catch people besides having the bus driver write down the license plate. So cameras make people accountable for their actions,” McDonough said. “[I also believe $300 is] the perfect amount to make people know that it was wrong and severe.”
Sload sees the program as a step in the right direction to help students stay safe when getting off the bus. With
THE WALL: Journalist describes career inspiration, path
violations mostly happening during elementary school drop-offs, the district hopes the cameras will encourage drivers to think twice before ignoring the bus stop sign. “I think this is a really great opportunity for us to partner with the local police department and BusPatrol to make our bus stops safer, and to make people more aware of the buses that are in the area,” Sload said. “[We] hope that if they get one ticket, they’ll be looking for that yellow school bus and stop.”*
Have you ever stopped to catch a glimpse at the Wall of Honor? We continue a series of interviews of noted alumni with a Cornell graduate, author, and co-chair of Fortune’s Most Powerful Women’s Summit.
Mark Ball ‘26 Reporter
Leigh Gallagher, older sister of Drew Gallagher ’95, 1990 graduate of Haven, loves to write. Gallagher has been a sought-after on-air presence on broadcast outlets including MSNBC’s Morning Joe, CNBC’s Squawk Box, CBS This Morning, Face the Nation, CNN’s The Lead with Jake Tapper, and others.
She pursued a career in journalism because of The Panther Press and Mrs. Stanfield’s ninth-grade journalism class.
“You get to find things out and tell it to people,” Gallagher said. “I just thought, ‘I don’t ever need to look at anything else. This is what I want to do.’”
According to Emily Farrell, a retired English teacher at Haven, Gallagher was an excellent writer. She had opinions and was not afraid to express them in class.
“In that time, many girls thought that they should be silent, and Leigh was not like that,” Farrell said.
Gallagher went to Cornell University after high school. She did not major in journalism, but looked for a fulltime journalism job after college. Finding a full-time job was difficult because she did not have connections.
“I just used the New York Times classified ads and looked and did a ton of interviews. My first job was at a trade magazine called Sporting Goods Business,” Gallagher said.
After working at the trade magazine for two and a half years, Gallagher went to Forbes Magazine, where she went on air on the Forbes show on Fox News. She also worked as a fact-checker.
“This is a great way to start at a publication because you learn how a story is reported. When you take someone else’s story, someone very senior, you really learn how they put it together,” Gallagher said.
After working at Forbes Magazine for six years, she worked as an editor at Smart Money Magazine. Three years later, she moved to Fortune Magazine, where she went on other shows.
“Other teachers and friends of mine would call me up and say, ‘Quick, turn on the TV. Leigh is on,” Farrell said.
At Fortune Magazine, Gallagher wrote two books, “The Airbnb Story” and “The End of the Suburbs.” She also became one of the co-chairs of the Fortune Most Powerful Women’s Summit.
“That was everything from building the community of people who we were trying to get to attend, bringing in speakers, and directing the programming,” Gallagher said.
In 2019, Google approached Gallagher about a job they were looking to fill in communications. She helped them build relationships with media in New York City and Washington for four years until shifting to a consulting company called Teneo.
“We advise CEOs. Usually, I’m working with the chief communications officer, but oftentimes it will be about the CEO’s media strategy, helping them solve a problem, or helping them navigate a complex situation,” Gallagher said.
As a consultant, Gallagher uses her experience in the Fortune Most Powerful Women’s Summit to help her clients navigate the summit and get speaking roles at the summit. For Gallagher, work should be enriching, transformative, and a point of passion.
“This was advice I got from my mother. She used to always say, ‘Do what you love.’ That was the most important thing, and that’s what I did,” Gallagher said.*
CONSPICUOUS CAMERA • BusPatrol camera is installed on the site of a school bus. The cameras are part of an agreement between the district and BusPatrol aimed at improving security and monitoring violations. PHOTO: MATTEO VENTRESCA
Photo provided by Leigh Gallagher via www.audible.com
Haven Yearbook
Administration takes steps to protect students under new sensitive location policies
Hear from the acting Superintendent and the Safety and Security Coordinator about what policies are in place to protect students in the event of an immigration raid.
On January 20, the first day of Donald Trump’s second term as president, he rescinded protected area policies put in place by Joe Biden that prevent Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) from entering “sensitive” places, such as schools and hospitals.
The official statement about the policy from a spokesperson at the Department of Homeland Security states: “This action empowers the brave men and women in CBP and ICE to enforce our immigration laws and catch criminal aliens—including murders and rapists—who have illegally come into our country. Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America’s schools and churches to avoid arrest. The Trump Administration will not tie the hands of our brave law enforcement, and instead trusts them to use common sense.”
This policy has put many people, undocumented or otherwise, on edge about how schools will handle the change.
Officials from Delaware County have stated that it is not a sanctuary county and will comply with state and
federal laws concerning how certain immigration issues should be handled. Even considering the state laws, many other counties, as well as public schools across the country, have put policies in place to protect undocumented students to the fullest extent possible.
According to Coordinator of Safety and Security Ms. Dana McBride, the safety and security team has instructed the school administration to follow a policy and procedure on how to handle immigration officers if they come to Haven. The policy includes verifying the officers, their credentials, and their paperwork.
“We work very closely with our local Police Chief [David] Splain of Nether Providence and Chief [Raymond] Stufflet of Swarthmore. They have both said that they will be here to support the school district if any of those ICE raids that you’ve seen in the media were to happen here,” McBride said.
Policies regarding what to do if an unfamiliar law enforcement officer were to come to school involve holding them in the vestibule between the outside and the
office until front office staff have properly vetted them by taking any documents they may have, and calling an administrator if necessary.
Then, the administrator will take over and call the Superintendent or Assistant Superintendent, who will go through a legal review before letting anybody into the building.
In her role as Coordinator of Safety and Security, McBride works to coordinate with local law enforcement, review procedures, and provide training for staff regarding various instances involving people entering the schools in our district.
“[She] provides our liaison to the police,”
Interim Superintendent Dr. Jim Scanlon said. “If we’re doing any investigations with law enforcement, she becomes our point of contact.”
Scanlon also shared specific details about student safety.
“We put something out [regarding immigration raids] in January when this all began, and we worked with our attorneys on that. So ICE shows up, for example, at a school, we’re not releasing them there,” Scanlon said. “If someone
Lunch staff works behind the scenes to offer
healthy, enjoyable lunch experience
Lunch is the time of day to be with friends and fuel up before classes, but who are the heroes working to make it possible?
Joya Nath ’28 Reporter
Before the first feet start to shuffle through the doors and the hallways are filled with chatter, Haven’s lunch staff is in the kitchen, gearing up for a long day of meal prep and serving.
While lunchtime is a prominent part of the school day for many Haven students, the culmination of work that goes into the third block frenzy consistently flies under the radar. Wallingford-Swarthmore School District Food Services are powered by The Nutrition Group, a food and facilities management company that prepares and serves nearly half a million meals per day. According to their website, in partnership with K-12 schools, The Nutrition Group works to “mentor, train, and coach the staff. By doing so, we invest in both their success and our success in fulfilling our promises to you.”
Throughout the WSSD community, cafeteria staff members provide friendly smiles and fulfilling meals despite the diligent labor it takes to fuel hundreds of kids daily. For some, day-to-day tasks look like attending to a variety of duties.
“I come in in the morning and I make breakfast, and get ready for tomorrow,” staff member Carolyn Conrad said. “At a certain point, I start making salads. Then, I make desserts, and then I do the cash register. Between the cash register period, I refill whatever needs to be restocked.”
For many staff members, preparation serves as the most time-consuming component of the cafeteria.
“A typical day is setting up and prepping for lunch at the deli, and then serving,” staff member Phyllis Tezla said. “People may not see the hard work we put into it all before it’s made.”
For district chef Aaron Marson, each day is a surprise as he travels between elementary, middle, and high schools.
“My day changes from day to day depending
on where I’m needed. Whether it’s catering for the district or pulling in for a cook, I bounce around to all five schools,” Marson said.
As they are serving such a wide range of ages, from elementary to high schoolers, the staff puts special thought into what works best for each demographic.
“We take pride in the food that we put out for you guys,” Marson said. “We try to create some different menu items that will really adapt to the high school or the elementary school.”
Only a portion of the cafeteria staff’s daily responsibilities happen before the students’ eyes. While the student connection aspect is important, there is a lot to be said for all that occurs behind kitchen doors. Multi-year staff member Paul Brooks knows this well.
“We always make sure the food is set and ready, and we always prep it every day,” Brooks said. “We also make sure we have everything in stock.”
As cafeteria staff continue to put their best foot forward for the community, students showing their appreciation makes all the difference.
“We just hope that the kids come in, and that they’re well fed and happy when they leave,” Brooks said.*
comes in and has a subpoena to take somebody, we can’t ignore the subpoena, but if they’re just coming to take somebody and it’s not done properly, we won’t release somebody.”
There are also other resources available for families who raids could impact.
According to Scanlon, school district social workers work with families regularly.
“I think that work is more important than worrying about ICE raids coming in, at least for us here in Wallingford,” Scanlon said. “We want to make sure that we’re providing the social services help that people need, regardless of whatever their needs are, and we do a lot of work with that.”
The school district reacted to the news in January by beginning to form new policies, and they are continuing to work towards sharing what they have.
“I would say to students and families, everybody that’s involved in a school, it’s a safe place,” Scanlon said.*
Red Cross offers volunteer opportunities for students
New club revolves around volunteering, humanitarian aid, and health.
Darcey Strachan ’28 Reporter
Haven students worked together to affiliate their new club with the Red Cross earlier this year.
Freshman Daisy Sanchez, who serves as president, brought the club to Haven.
“I contacted this lady from the Red Cross,” Sanchez said. “We talked about getting this set up for a few months before we actually got it up and ready for people to join.”
Freshman Fiona Seale, who serves as vice president, worked with Sanchez to get the club up and running.
“Daisy came up with the original idea, and then she asked me to be a part of it, and I was really interested,” Seale said.
So far, the club has had two meetings and plans to have a bake sale to raise money. As the club is starting up, the leaders have some goals in mind on how they want to move forward.
“I hope that we can really hone in on the idea of service. A lot of people who will join this club would be people interested in humanitarian aid, medical careers, or first aid,” Seale said.
Sanchez and Seale began planning club activities, including offering free CPR certification classes. They are also interested in participating in Red Cross ‘Prepare with Pedro,’ which involves visiting local elementary schools and teaching kids to stay safe during emergencies or disasters.
The club may also participate in the ‘Sound the Alarm’ campaign,
where volunteers speak to families about fire safety and help install smoke detectors.
“I want everybody to have the tools that they need, and I want everybody to know that they have people out there that want to help them,” Sanchez said.
Along with Sanchez and Seale, other student leaders include freshman Elizabeth Whitehead as treasurer and sophomore Krish Bhatta as secretary. The club’s teacher advisor is Mrs. Kate Evans. After attending the first couple of meetings, some students have become interested in this club and are excited to see the impact they will create.
“I’m most excited because I get to connect to the community and spend time helping others,” freshman Colette Sauve said. More information about the Red Cross can be found on their website. Interested students can join the Red Cross Schoology group under Haven groups.*
CAFETERIA CHOICES • A student takes her pick from the drinks in the cafeteria cooler. PHOTO: JOYA NATH
BEATING INTEREST • Freshman Fiona Seale presents to the crowd, hoping to gain interest. PHOTO: LIZZY DEAVER
HAVEN Arts
ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: Senior’s artistic skills fuel intriguing pieces
With emphasis on surrealism and multimedia, MJ Rosenberg showcases the depth of their creativity.
Josie Wieland ’26 Arts Editor
Through a mind soaring with inspiration, senior MJ Rosenberg brings their creative visions to life with painting.
Rosenberg’s interest in art has been ever-present since childhood but further solidified through their artistic experiences in high school.
“It has always been in the back of my mind. Even when I was a kid, I would always feel like I wanted to be an artist when I grew up,” Rosenberg said.
Rosenberg has received formal training through pre-college art programs at the University of the Arts, Rhode Island School of Design, and Emily Carr University of Art and Design and is currently taking classes at Moore College of Art.
Out of all the mediums they have learned to use, Rosenberg always goes back to acrylic painting.
“It’s just meditative in a way, where I turn off my brain. I’ll just start going through the motions and feel free,” Rosenberg said.
Their creative process has been gradually refined into a system that works well for them, beginning with brainstorming and sketching out different concepts.
“Usually, I’m sporadic about where I paint. I tend to do different things as I go, but I try to block out the main colors and then start adding more and more details as I go,” Rosenberg said.
“Microcasm” is a painting that showcases Rosenberg’s strong imagination, as it is a surrealist piece that displays clouds and an entire galaxy within different parts of an eyeball.
“I decided that it would be really cool to have the contrast of a space night sky with some sort of bright day sky for the white part of your eye,” Rosenberg said.
Among Rosenberg’s most recent paintings, their favorite is a multimedia portrait titled “Bee Portrait.” It includes intricate details such as honeycomb and dried baby’s breath flowers, each delicately placed.
“I just feel like it’s a pinnacle of all the skills I’ve collected and technical skills I’ve learned,” Rosenberg said.
Through AP Art and Design, art teacher Mrs. Jennifer Rodgers has been a helpful resource for Rosenberg’s creation of “Bee Portrait” and other projects in their AP portfolio.
“As always, with MJ and that piece, it was encouraging them to test out the ideas, experiment with them and see if those things work,” Rodgers said. “MJ embraced that,
and the result speaks for itself.”
The future holds many artistic opportunities for Rosenberg, especially through art school, and they are eager to take on any of the possibilities that await them.
“I’ve been strongly thinking about potentially being an art teacher. Part of that is because of inspiration from Mrs. Rodgers and how much she’s helped me,” Rosenberg said. “I really like the idea of helping to nurture other artists and I’ve been told a few times that I would be a good teacher, so I feel like I would find it very fulfilling.”
English teacher Mr. Kevin Haney expresses gratitude for having been part of Rosenberg’s artistic journey in high school and offers advice as they prepare for the future.
“When you feel those brick walls coming to limit you, don’t climb the wall; break it down and run through it,” Haney said. “I think MJ is the kind of artist, the kind of human being, that can run through any wall that gets in their way. Follow your dreams, knock down the barriers, and in the end, you’ll look back on this beautiful path and be so proud of yourself.”*
TEACHER CREATIONS: Social Studies teacher shares musical endeavors
Multi-instrumentalist Mr. Tom Babcock is interested in more than just history, with a passion for music at the forefront of his life.
Morgan Matthews ‘28
Reporter
Mr. Tom Babcock, in addition to teaching, enjoys making music and expressing himself creatively.
Babcock is not just a social studies teacher—he’s a storyteller, a musician, and an inspiring presence in the classroom and beyond, with his musical beginnings rooted early in life.
“My house growing up was very musical. Everyone played something,” Babcock said. “I’ve played guitar since I was in fifth grade.”
Although from a young age, there was no question about whether or not he was interested in music, Babcock has continuously dabbled in different areas, with the lockdown of 2020 allowing him to hone in on newfound talents.
“[I started] playing banjo and mandolin, but not as good as guitar. I could play piano a little bit, too,” Babcock said.
Babcock’s life partner shares his affinity for music, bringing the two closer together.
“My wife, who I’ve been married to for the last 30 years, also comes from a very musical family,” Babcock said.
The two continue on the legacy of creative exploration by encouraging the same activity in their own children.
“When we were starting our own family, this one thing that we both have in common with each other certainly got pushed,” Babcock said. “All my kids sing and play something just because it’s what my dad did.”
Babcock believes that music can be a helpful tool in learning to foster connections, personal development, and lifelong learning.
“I love it, because it’s a constant challenge,” Babcock said. “I love the challenge of, can I play that? Even if I can’t, can I learn to play it slowly?”
Babcock argues that in learning an instrument, it’s important not to be overly critical of yourself while still taking responsibility.
“Could you play a song yesterday? Oh, you couldn’t. All right. Can you play it a little bit better today? You can, all right, and you can take that and you go with it,” Babcock said. “We constantly compare ourselves to someone else, but you really have no idea what that person put into it.”
Babcock’s emphasis on the message of prioritizing what you love is clear.
“You have to just practice and take your mind off of whatever else is going on, at least for the length of time you’re playing,” Babcock said.
Babcock believes that working hard to achieve a goal is an incredibly meaningful experience, with every small victory symbolizing improvement.
“The only thing that you can actually compare yourself to is you yesterday. That’s it. Everything else is complete dysmorphia,” Babcock said.
When asked about whether or not he thought that music translates over to positive performance in school, Babcock countered with a different point of view, arguing that it is important to enjoy aspects of living outside of school.
“Why would you want it to translate to school work? I mean, it’s good for life,” Babcock said.*
BEE PORTRAIT • Multimedia Portrait MICROCASM • Surrealist Painting Art supplied by MJ Rosenberg
MUSICAL ENDEAVORS • Social Studies teacher Tom Babcock poses with his guitar between classes.
PHOTO: MORGAN MATTHEWS
MJ ROSENBERG • Yearbook Staff
AP Art and Design students discuss portfolio completion
Students in the year-long class share insight on their progression throughout the course.
Morgan Matthews ’28, Joya Nath ’28 Reporters
Since the fall, AP 2D and 3D Art and Design students have tackled a variety of projects and mediums.
As summer approaches, AP Art students are wrapping up the yearlong course and reflecting on how they’ve been creatively challenged.
The courses, taught by art teachers Mr. Scott Rodgers and Mrs. Jennifer Rodgers, follow the AP’s curriculum to guide students through a sustained investigation and selected works.
“You take a full year to go in depth into a theme of your choice, and in that year you create 15-20 pieces to explore that idea,” senior AP Art 3D student Kate Fox said. This exploration-based schedule allows students to be flexible in their creations and manage time independently.
“We make our own curriculum in a way,” senior AP Art 3D student Amber Motsch said. “Everybody just works on their projects for the sustain investigation.”
The yearlong time frame gives students time to master their craft.
“AP Art is a year-long class, so it’s both semesters, and we just get to spend the whole year making art,” senior AP 2D Art student Anya Agha said.
While both follow a similar curriculum format, AP Art branches out into two courses: AP Art 2D and AP Art 3D.
“AP 3D isn’t necessarily just ceramics, but for us it mainly is,” Fox said. “You could make anything, sculpture wise using any materials. And then there’s an AP 2D class, which is painting, drawing, and some graphic design.”
Due to a mixture of mediums, each student’s yearlong focus is wholly unique.
“I love asking people, ‘What’s your topic?’, because it’s always very different and unique to them,” Agha said. “I know one of my friends does a lot of landscape-type stuff,
and then someone else is doing surreal art, someone’s doing mythical creatures, and I do a lot more portraits. Everyone’s on different pages.”
Motsch has focused her investigation on the ceramics aspect of AP 3D, with a human theme in mind.
“My sustained investigation right now is trying to find a way that I can confuse the human eye,” Motsch said. “Recently, I’ve been using a lot of black and white and carving a lot of patterns on my pieces to create some funky designs.”
Fox brings her pieces to life with a more environmental aspect in mind.
“What I’m trying to explore is how to show nature and botany through my work,” Fox said.
With little cap on creative freedom, the AP art environment differs from that of a typical classroom.
“Being able to do something that’s not just crunching numbers, or reading and writing, it’s just really nice to have a different outlet,” Fox said.
Not only is the environment different, but so is the subject matter. Free from tests and assignments, AP Art challenges students in other ways.
“We spend the whole year making art to fit into our portfolio that we’re developing, and then at the end of the year, we turn in our whole portfolio to get AP credit for the class,” Agha said.
Many AP Art students have been taking art electives throughout their four years of high school, leading to a bonded community of creatives.
“We’ve been together for the last couple of years, so it’s a nice little family that we’ve created in the ceramics studio,” Motsch said.
In addition to their peers, students have formed bonds with instructors Mrs. Rodgers, who leads AP Art 2D, and Mr. Rodgers, who leads AP Art 3D.
Music student teacher bids farewell to Haven
Due to a broken kiln, adviser Mr. Rodgers has taken a more hands-on approach to ensure a speedy turnout of pieces.
“He’s helping us maintain a fast turnaround by working with us, helping us clean, and just doing more than he usually has to do,” Fox said.
With a busy year coming to a close, AP Art remains a steadily enjoyable course for students to sculpt connections and tap into their creativity.
“It doesn’t matter how hard my classes are during the day, because at least I have ceramics during fourth block,” Motsch said.*
Looking back at experiences with Mr. Nicholas Pignataro’s most recent student teacher.
Giana Gliko ’26
Contributor
Student teacher Ms. Samatha MacFarlane left Haven in late February, completing her required student teaching placement with music teacher Mr. Nicholas Pignataro.
At the epilogue of her time here, students and teachers alike reminisce on her role in Haven’s story.
“I was really grateful that the students were open to my ideas and what I brought to the table,” MacFarlane said.
Sophomore Juliette Loyd bonded with MacFarlane over their shared passion for music education.
“Ms. MacFarlane was probably the best student teacher that I’ve had so far. I mean, she was a really great conductor, and she was a really nice person,” Loyd said.
From the students who spent time with her almost every day, MacFarlane’s impact also reached those who interacted with her far less.
“I thought it was really cool watching her, especially during the concert, conduct the other ensembles. And I thought it was cool to see how music teachers learn. I could tell she was really skilled at having really precise rhythms,” sophomore Lucy Newton said.
MacFarlane, a Music Education major at Temple University, served as drum major in college and credits leadership in high school and college marching band as experiences that led her to teaching.
“I don’t think I would have felt that way if I didn’t have those student leadership experiences, getting hands-on, just, ‘Go help someone, go do it. You’re ‘in charge.’ You have to make decisions. So in that
aspect, teaching is very much the same,” MacFarlane said.
Loyd and Newton observed MacFarlane’s strong conducting skills and control of the ensembles, which Loyd attributed to her experience as a drum major.
“Your connections with students is a big aspect of teaching in general. And so I tried to kind of put myself out there, even though I was pretty nervous, just as far as jumping right in, even if it’s as simple as, ‘Hey, how are you? What’s your name? I’m here to help you if you need it,’” MacFarlane said, describing the nerves of her first week at Haven.
Pignataro highlights a shift in perspective that these relationships create.
“My teachers, when I was a kid, seemed like gods to me, or some sort of strange mythical creature that I didn’t understand. But it turns out that teachers are human beings, just regular humans, just like the students are,”
Pignataro said.
MacFarlane’s experience at Haven weaved together many favorite memories. She spotlights watching fellow teachers dance at the Black History Month assembly and the jazz band performances she was a part of.
“I really liked hanging out with her at the Penncrest Jazz Festival. It was really fun because we sat together during some of the performances and got to talk,” Loyd said.
Pignataro believes her interactions with students at these memorable events revealed her selfless character. Although
she left Haven on Friday, February 28, MacFarlane returned to conduct two songs during the band and orchestra concert on Wednesday, March 19.
“That was a bigger test for her, and I think she did well,” Newton said.
Pignataro compared the concert to a graduation ceremony, providing closure for all involved.
“It was kind of like the end of the chapter, the very last sentence in that aspect…Me showing up was me showing the students that I appreciate them at the end of the day,” MacFarlane said.
MacFarlane is now undertaking her
final student teaching placement at Rydal Elementary in the Abington School District, the last step towards her degree.
“Ms. MacFarlane has a knack for teaching that is hard to teach, and I think it will have her go down in history as maybe one of the finest student teachers we’ve ever had in Strath Haven,” Pignataro said.*
CREATIVE PRIDE • Seniors Amber Motsch and Kate Fox display some of the pieces they have made in AP Art. PHOTO: MORGAN MATTHEWS
CONDUCTING EXPERIENCE • Student teacher Ms. Samantha MacFarlane conducts the wind ensemble in their piece “Caribana Afterparty” during the band and orchestra concert on March 19. PHOTO: EVELYNN LIN
Thrift store ignites connections, community
Heart and Soul’d resembles a boutique store but is so much more than that.
Luci DiBonaventura ’25
Detours & Opinions Editor
Located in Swarthmore, the thrift shop Heart and Soul’d is more than a second-hand boutique but also a hub of connection, compassion, and community.
Sisters Kristen and Terry Manchi founded the store in January 2024.
“Our primary mission is to raise funds for foster and adoption services,” Kristen said.
Proceeds support organizations such as Fostering Hope of Delaware County and CASA Youth Advocates. The shop doesn’t stop there; over time, it has evolved into a place where people connect, becoming a staple for the Haven community.
“We have one [Haven] student who creates jewelry for us, and we sell it in the store,” Kristen said. “We’ve also had the literary magazine available in our store… It’s another avenue for them to learn about things that are offered at their school.”
The store is a place for people to connect, shop, and learn things about each other.
“I’m like a regular at Heart and Soul’d,” senior Ella DiBonaventura said. “I’ve made things for it and have seen old friends walk in and out. It’s such a great community and opportunity to better connect with your home.”
The store brings strength and compassion out in people.
”One time I needed a dress for an event, and everyone in the store helped me pick one,” senior Jaden Spears said.
“People I didn’t even know were giving me compliments and hyping me up. It made me feel really seen and supported by my community.”
The store has inspired young students to participate and help with their community.
“When I went to this store for the first time and saw the amazing things they were doing, I wanted to help my community out,” DiBonaventura said. “I work at a program at my school where we tutor kids at the Chester community center, and was inspired to organize a toy drive with my sister.”*
Trails provide exercise, opportunities for students
WSSD contains numerous trails and parks, allowing students to relax and refresh in nature.
Clark Kerkstra ’27
Haven Happenings Editor
On an average Saturday in WSSD, where can you find biker gangs, peaceful families of five hiking, children’s soccer games, and remotecontrol car racing leagues?
The answer is Smedley Park, one of the many systems of parks and trails throughout WSSD.
Encompassing 141 acres, Smedley Park contains numerous trails and connections to other parks, as well as fields for youth activities. According to Friends of Smedley Park, a nonprofit organization focused on promoting and maintaining the park, the park was formed in 1937 and named after the first chairman of the Delaware County Park Board, Samuel Smedley.
The land was originally used for a paper mill that began operating in 1826, though the mill was torn down after the I-476 highway was completed in 1991, an installation that prompted an environmental and historical impact study.
George Gorman works with Friends of Smedley Park to maintain the trails, and recently began the Adopt-A-Trail program to allow for community members to help with trail maintenance.
On March 29, Chester Ridley Crum Watersheds held their annual cleanup, an effort Gorman says that youth participated in.
“For people who are locked onto the screens all day, I'm a firm believer that something like non-competitive hiking or biking is a nice way [to relax],” Gorman
Helen Kate Furness Library offers welcoming, inclusive environment
The library offers exclusive teen programs and a teen room for kids to hang out and find young adult books.
Evie Fernandez ’27 Haven Happenings Editor
The Helen Kate Furness Library opened in 1902 and was initially run out of a room at Wallingford Elementary School. Many students in Wallingford and Swarthmore have been going to the library for years. The library offers many programs for all age groups.
Because the library is close to the schools, buses drop off students there after middle and high school, and many students live within walking distance, leading to a lot of time spent throughout their childhoods at the library.
Teen Librarian Jenny Reitmeyer notes that the library offers craft programs, movement programs, financial literacy programs, and college application process help for teens.
“I work closely with the Strath Haven Middle School and Strath Haven High School,” Reitmeyer said. “Of course, [we offer programs for] kids who are homeschooled or go to private schools as well, but we’re just down the street from Wallingford elementary, the middle school, and high school.”
For sophomore Shelby Seidman, the library has been a part of growing up.
“I’ve been going there basically as young as I can remember—at the very least four or five years old. I’ve always lived in the Wallingford area,
so that library and Swarthmore library have been places I’ve known since as far back as I can remember,” Seidman said.
The library also partners with local students and the schools to offer more learning opportunities.
“One of the Strath Haven High School students is establishing a science National Honor Society with Mr. [Andrew] Benzing,” Reitmeyer said. “In establishing a science National Honor Society, they need to have a project, and here at the library, one of our test members is installing a monarch way station garden, which is milkweed and nectar plants to feed the monarchs on their migration to Mexico every year.”
Overall, the library offers a comforting environment to anyone who chooses to be there.
“Everyone there is genuinely kind, and they are there to help everyone out. It’s just a great place to go if you just want to relax or read a book,” sophomore Taylor Moody said.*
said. “You’re doing your homework all the time, just get out in the woods.”
Sophomore Owen Graden enjoys biking and hiking in the park. He particularly enjoys the Springfield Trail, a five-mile loop running through Smedley and various parks in Springfield.
“It creates a nice space where there’s a lot of woods and you could go on nice hikes and enjoy the outdoors,” Graden said.
The park is also used for youth soccer and baseball games, with fields and playgrounds available for younger children. There is even an extensive remote-control car racing culture.
Sophomore Carson Keller is part of the cross country and track teams and uses Smedley and the surrounding trails for running. The Smedley-Leiper trail, a paved trail, provides connections between trails in Smedley and other trails and roads, making it more accessible on foot for those coming from near Haven.
“[Trails are] more interesting than road [running], you have to think about where you’re going,” Keller said. “They’re also hillier, [which is] better.”
Gorman believes that Haven students would do well to utilize the trails, seeing them as a chance to relax.
“I'm a big proponent of getting people away from the screens. Get out in the woods, go social, hang out with your friends, go for a walk on the trail,” he said.*
Introducing Walliworld—just a few Haven’s community. From libraries wonderful world of the Wallingford-Swarthmore home to many unique
PHOTO: CLARK KERKSTRA
PHOTO: EVIE FERNANDEZ
Swarthmore’s Renato Pizza is slice of home
A local favorite since 1985, pizzeria is a go-to spot for WSSD residents.
Matthew Ramirez ’26 Managing Editor of Web
On the busy sidewalks of Park Ave, the aroma of pizza fills the street where customers bond with their friends and family over a place of tradition.
Renato Pizza, located at 8 Park Ave in Swarthmore, PA, has served the community since 1985. They specialize in pizza pies, salads, calzones, hoagies, and steaks, according to their website.
Pete Canakis, son of the original owner and manager, has been involved since he was a child and has over twenty years of working experience at the shop. He has seen Renato adapt through generations while maintaining its role as a community hub.
“It’s been a gathering place for kids from toddlers, elementary school, middle school, high school, and college students,” Canakis said. “They come back when they get older and they appreciate [it].”
Renato is also a place for students to gather. Junior Vincent Dykes, a longtime customer, described its unique atmosphere.
“All the kids are going to go there… It’s going to be the personality of the people around,” Dykes said. “It’s
few of the many places that make up libraries to family-owned businesses, the Wallingford-Swarthmore School District is unique local establishments.
not bad and it’s cheap.”
Sophomore Sophia Annacone discovered Renato Pizza by walking through town with her friends.
“I heard from other people, ‘Yeah, it’s really good,’ so I got it,” she said. “I probably don’t go all the time, just when I want to treat myself.”
The environment and comfort food make Renato’s feel like a special place.
“The fresh-cooked food—it’s like a home-cooked meal,” Annacone said.
“My favorite memory is just being there with my friends and enjoying our meal.”
Canakis emphasized the joy he finds in hosting these moments.
“It makes it all worth it,” he said. “You build relationships—from little kids to adults. It’s not like work. It’s fun.”
Even as technology and trends have changed throughout the shop’s existence from cash-only payments to modern POS systems, the heart of the place remains.
“It’s just a great community and a great place to work,” Canakis said. “I was working here with my dad when I was a little kid, and now sometimes I bring my own kids to work.”
Beyond its Italian-inspired menu, Renato Pizza plays an unspoken role in the WSSD community.
“It’s more than just pizza, it’s part of growing up here,” Dykes said.*
Swarthmore CO-OP is warm gathering spot for students
The store is a meaningful place for many in the area and creates a space for people to connect.
Mia Fagone ’26 Health & Sciences Editor
Due to its convenient location in Swarthmore’s town center, the Swarthmore Cooperative (CO-OP) is a popular spot for students of all ages to meet with friends and grab a bite to eat.
Students of all ages flock to the grocery store and consider it a crucial landmark in the ville.
“They have some really unique stuff that I haven’t really seen anywhere else before,” junior Magnolia Brown said. “They have all different types of food, and their homemade food is really good. All really good stuff.”
A local group of women opened the CO-OP in 1932, hoping to help make better quality fresh produce available to the town through beginning a buying club, which later became the third ever food cooperative in the United States, according to the Swarthmore CO-OP website. Now, the CO-OP still strives to cater towards the community and lines its shelves with mostly local produce.
“[Our goal is] really to be focusing on local products and just supporting the community. I always say that we're a pillar of the town,” CO-OP frontend and membership manager Shaina Ragamat said. “We've been here for a
long time. People know us, and people grow up with us.“
Both the indoor window side tables and the outdoor patio-seating options offer places for customers to sit and eat, fostering many memories for students who visited the store throughout their childhood.
“In middle school, we would always hang out there, and we’d always get drinks and snacks. I feel like it’s just part of the town,” Brown said. “[I like] everything about it.”
The CO-OP staff has implemented various community elements, such as a “bag library”—a barrel by the register where customers can drop or take reusable grocery bags—and an art swap wall, in the store within the past few years. The goal is for the space to be safe, inclusive, and welcoming to all.
“We just want to make sure that everyone is happy, comfortable, hungry, and well fed,” Ragamat said.*
Kung Fu Tea vibes: ‘Welcoming, friendly, and relaxing.’
Bubble tea spot has become a regular hangout space not just for food and drink, but also for the environment.
Kaitlyn Ho ’26 Managing Editor of Print
f you’re looking for a place to cool down in the summer or hang out with friends, Kung Fu Tea is a community staple.
The smell of sweet tapioca and the clatter of Jenga blocks on polished wood hit as soon as the glass door opens. For many students, Kung Fu Tea has been a place to relax.
Couple Stacey Lin and Tony Chun moved to the U.S. from China in 2018, setting up Kung Fu Tea in April 2019.
Lin’s favorite bubble tea flavor is honey oolong milk tea.
“[High schoolers] order bubble teas for parties or small groups for the team,” Stacey said. “Children don't spend a lot [of money], so maybe our bubble tea can help them to meet at a nice place, so they can talk together some time after school.”
Sophomore Evan Lin worked there for two months over the summer, twice a week. His favorite bubble tea flavor is taro.
“Oftentimes when I'm working, I see familiar faces, people from our school, and sometimes even teachers with their children,” Lin said. “Usually they'll order lots of food and drinks, and because we also have board games there, they’ll just hang around for a while, and sometimes my friends would also come visit me during my shifts.”
For Evan, the attentive details add
up like the never-ending flow of toys in the claw machine. That “relaxing” and warm environment allowed him to grow communication skills from his first job.
Sophomore Roxy Shelton has been going to Kung Fu Tea for the past three years and considers herself a frequent customer. She enjoys hanging out with friends and studying there.
“The food and the drinks are very different compared to the other places in Media, and I just think that they're all really good,” Shelton said.
Stacey wants to make Kung Fu Tea welcoming, but she doesn’t think being a special part of the community has to be restricted to certain places.
“I think anywhere [that has] the best service, best food, or drink, and being nice to them would be most important,” Stacey said. “If you don’t have those things, you cannot keep the customers, but that's why we've been [around for] more than six years. So we’re okay for now, I think we're doing a good job.”*
Students learn to save lives
Weekend class teaches students CPR, AED use, and more.
Roland Rennick-Zuefle ‘27
Contributor
Haven health and physical education teacher Mr. Steve Woolery is offering a class on lifesaving and CPR training on the weekends.
“Lifeguard Training, Fitness, and Sport” provides students training and certifications in lifeguarding and CPR while focusing on important skills in swimming, first aid, and AED usage.
“It’s for professional CPR and for the professional AED trainer. You will learn a higher level of CPR and AED than you learn from the regular education classes,” Woolery said.
The class attracts a variety of interested students, such as students wanting to work as lifeguards, members of Haven’s swim teams, and scouts who want to get their lifesaving merit badge or further advance their training.
However, Woolery said that even beyond these groups, everyone can benefit.
“You’re learning the CPR, the AED, the first aid training,” he said. “ You might know enough, just enough, to save their life.”
Woolery has been interested in lifeguarding from as far back as his time in college as an athlete in aquatic sports. He bonded with his coach, who co-ran a lifeguard instruction course. Woolery took the course and became certified himself.
CPR: Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation
AED: Automated External Defibrillator
“I didn’t know if I was going to use it in life or not,” he said.
However, Woolery’s interest in swimming continued to be a major part of his life. For 20 years, he has co-run the pool management company IM Pools, which manages local pools like Rose Valley Swim Club.
The class requires some prerequisites that students need to demonstrate on the first day, including an untimed 150-yard swim and the timed task of retrieving a brick from eleven feet deep and returning it to the surface.
“You don’t have to be the greatest swimmer in the world,” Woolery said. “But if you have the ability to do those two things, you will absolutely be able to pass the class.”
Sophomore Veronica King used the skills she learned during the weekend class, as well as its pre-weekend online portion, to become a lifeguard.
“The skills we learned for lifeguarding are just really versatile in general,” she said.
King noted the benefits of the online portion’s emphasis on social interactions as a lifeguard.
“It’s really valuable,” she said. “From lifeguarding, I’ve learned a lot about how to interact with kids and adults.”
She listed topics like spinal extrications and CPR as some of the harder parts of the class to master.
“It’s such a short time period,” she said. “But once you get the hang of it, it’s pretty easy.”
Both Woolery and King highlighted the personal connections made with everyone in the course.
“They’re coming in here, they’re learning how to rescue, and walking out here knowing they got a certificate to be a certified lifeguard,” Woolery said. “It’s not the easiest thing to do.”
Those interested in taking the course can speak with Mr. Woolery.
“You’re giving up a weekend to become a professional lifeguard. Which is pretty cool overall,” he said.*
*
MYTHBUSTERS: Playing “catch up” with sleep
Sleeping in over the weekend doesn’t always protect you from the effects of prolonged sleep deprivation.
Dyllan Leaf ’28 Reporter
The idea that it is possible to “make up” lost sleep by sleeping in on the weekends is commonly believed by students. In reality, that isn’t quite right.
For many students, cramming in as much sleep as possible over the weekend is an obvious choice. With the intense schedule, high school students’ balance during the school week, sleep is often what ends up on the chopping block.
The difference between sleeping six hours and sleeping ten hours is quite significant when it comes to how it affects the brain and body. But it shouldn’t matter as long as it averages out nicely across the week, right?
Wrong. A 2019 paper in Current Biology explains how changing our sleep schedules day-to-day can have some seriously negative effects on the body. They conducted a study allotting various amounts of sleep to different test groups, and the results showed that subjects who slept for only a few hours during the week, but made it up over the weekend, still displayed signs of sleep deprivation.
“It’s kind of like a bank. You deposit sleep into the bank, and every time you’re sleep-deprived, you’re pulling more out than you were putting in, so you need to put in a lot more time to make up for the time you missed,” social studies teacher Mrs. Amanda Lawson said.
Scientists recommend that teenagers sleep between 9 and 9 ½ hours per night. If students achieve this, there should be no need to play catch up. However, the issue is that allotting nine or more hours of sleep doesn’t fit into most student’s increasingly busy schedules.
“During the week I usually only sleep four or five hours,” freshman Adeline Constable said. “Sometimes I’m up late studying, sometimes I just can’t sleep, and sometimes I’m honestly just stressing about school.”
However, continuous insufficient sleep only builds upon the problem.
“Sleep deprivation complicates itself. Every time you’re sleep-deprived, you’re more and more sleep-deprived,” Lawson said. “On night one, you’re already showing signs, and then on night two, you’ve just made it worse. It sort of deposits itself on top of itself. It gets worse and worse.”
According to an article from the website News in Health, habitual sleep deprivation increases one’s risk of conditions such as obesity or diabetes. Studies have also shown that only a few weeks of sleeping too little can have noticeable effects on the body.
While it is possible to eventually reverse the effects of sleep deprivation by developing positive, prolonged sleeping habits, you can’t just sleep an extra few hours over the weekend to completely avoid harm caused by lack of sleep.
“You can’t miss three hours of sleep and say, I’ll just sleep an extra hour here, an extra hour on that day, and an extra hour there, and it’ll be made up for. It doesn’t work that way,” Lawson said. “You don’t immediately make it up. You need weeks and weeks and weeks of good sleep to make it back.”*
ZYN advent raises questions about impact
Vapes attract smells and attention with the air blown out. But students are now concerned that ZYN will be the new gateway.
Zoe Likely ’25 Reporter
On January 16, the FDA authorized the sale of 20 ZYN pouches, citing sufficient evidence that the “new products offer greater benefits to population health than risks.”
ZYNs are small nicotine pouches that are used by placing them between a person’s gums and lip. When using ZYN, there is no smoking, and thus there are fewer harmful additives within it. However, if used consistently over time, it can result in gum irritation and possible decay. Research institutions such as Johns Hopkins School of Public Health are more concerned with the marketing tactics ZYN uses to target young kids. ZYNs in stores like Wawa or CVS cost as little as $5.29 versus a vape pen, which, depending on the brand, can cost around $17.
In their marketing, ZYN targets the discrete nature of the product, similar to chewing gum or eating a piece of candy. Because they sit on top of the gums, teachers are less likely to notice, and even if they did, because Strath Haven does not have a strong no-gum policy, it looks nothing out of the ordinary.
Business Insider noted the owner of ZYN’s stock did very well last quarter and continues to grow steadily. But while they grow in popularity, they also grow in misconceptions. The FDA ruled ZYNs as “better” because
there are no carcinogenic materials. Nothing is smoked when using a ZYN; thus, carcinogenic chemicals do not get into your lungs and cause side effects. However, because ZYNs contain nicotine, excessive amounts can lead to anxiety, cardiovascular issues, and addiction.
Some students have reported seeing others taking ZYNs in class, sticking them under their desks, and sharing them with friends. Because of their discreet packaging, any teacher would look the other way.
“I wouldn’t say it is a substitute for vaping,” senior Zunairah Ali said. “It’s more of a substitute for chewing tobacco. I don’t know why they are pushing it towards teens, I don’t think there is much crossover between the two.” Ali is a co-president of the business club and feels the marketing strategies are flawed in terms of the target audience. Because so little is known about the product, some people rule it as “healthier” or having “less impact.” The future of ZYNs, in both positive and negative ways, is still undetermined.
As of April 7, Washington officials introduced a bill to ban flavored tobacco and nicotine. This does not affect ZYNs, but it shows the changes that might be coming about the product and other nicotine products similar to it.*
ALL NIGHTER • A student sits, studying late at night with a cup of coffee to stay awake. PHOTO: DYLLAN LEAF
LIFESAVING TECHNIQUE • Students practice CPR. The weeklend class focuses on advanced CPR and AED training. PHOTO: ROLAND RENNICK-ZUEFLE
DEI policy, NIH fund cuts purge government websites, stunt biomedical research, students feel effects
For some students, the elimination of online resources presents academic and ethical challenges.
Mia Fagone ’26, Fiona Seale ’28 Health & Sciences Editor, Reporter
Recently, government-funded programs, grants, research, and other initiatives thought to be involved in or supporting “diversity, equity, and inclusion” (DEI) ideals and language have been brought down or purged. This is due to executive order Executive Order 14151: “Ending Radical And Wasteful Government DEI Programs And Preferencing,” signed by President Trump on January 20.
The order details a need to cut down on grants and sources labeled as “discriminatory” and “illegal.” Some of these resources include government websites that are commonly used by students for academic research projects.
fact that the government is just making arbitrary decisions about what is and isn’t available to the public for viewing.”
AP Research students could also be affected by these website issues and newfound gray areas when citing sources. For some, it is as much an ethical problem as an academic one.
“This is going to take us backwards in time—not just individual little things here and there, the entire scientific cutting edge is being throttled.”
One instance where students would use these government sources is the modern hero project, implemented in 9th-grade English classes, where students travel to the library for research and citation lessons with librarian Mrs. Beth Cohen. Students are guided to pick an influential figure to research and create a presentation on.
Mr. Timothy Styer
“I think it’s going to have a really big impact on the future of research,” senior Zoe Likely said. “With a lot of research-based things you’re going to do in school, you’re looking at what you can find, and then you’re making your own opinion about it. If what you’re finding is biased because of these terms that they don’t want you to see are being removed, you’re immediately losing credibility in your paper because you don’t know the full story.”
sources to continue their work.
Science classes also reference and apply constantly evolving research to their curriculum.
“We’re accessing the primary sources for what’s happening currently, my class is all about the cutting edge,” science teacher Mr. Timothy Styer said. “That’s just what we do in class, what is happening out there in the real world. For example, what is happening so quickly with cancer research.”
According to Nature, a scientific journal, the NIH has cut 770 active research grants since April 7 under Trump. 28.7 percent had to do with HIV/AIDS research, 24.3 percent was transgender health related, and 17.1 percent was Covid-19 projects. Millions of dollars in vaccine hesitancy grants were slashed, projects that aim to build immunization.
may also limit opportunities to pursue research projects or graduate programs in science fields. Doctoral students are first on the chopping block as Trump limits financial support towards their various programs.
“There’s a lot you hear now about students who got accepted to scientific grad programs for the fall, and the grant money ended, so they’ve gotten letters that said, ‘Sorry, we can’t accept you into our grad program because the research study you were going to do has been defunded,’” Cohen said.
“If they had picked Jackie Robinson and saved a bunch of websites in November, those websites might not have been available in January when we got to the note-taking part,” Cohen said. “As a librarian, I’m very concerned about the
In addition to the various changes to government websites, the Trump administration has produced various executive orders to cut back National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding, a division of the Department of Health and Human Services, and the largest public funding source for worldwide biomedical research. According to the National Library of Medicine, Trump’s budget plan shrinks the NIH’s funding by 18 percent. This leaves many researchers in disadvantage as they now must find alternative financial
“I think that this will strangulate us. This is going to take us backwards in time— not just individual little things here and there, the entire scientific cutting edge is being throttled,” Styer said.
As the worldwide scientific community changes rapidly, and fear blossoms, STEM-inclined students feel the blow to their future career plans.
“As someone going into a scientific field, it’s really discouraging to see the grants being taken away,” senior biotechnology student Riley Smith said. “I don’t know if I want to go into a STEM career anymore. I don’t know if there’s job security in that.”
As Haven students approach college, it’s relevant to think about how funding cuts
Policies barricade measures to prevent bird flu outbreak
With increasing cases decimating the poultry population and reduced disease-prevention funding, bird flu poses a larger threat than ever.
Lavanya Dixit ’27 Sports Editor
The avian influenza, or H5N1 bird flu, is a highly contagious viral disease. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that contact with an infected bird or its feces, nasal secretions, or saliva is the main way the virus spreads.
Among birds, the disease is often classified as either Low Pathogenic Avian Influenza (LPAI) or Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI). LPAI has comparatively moderate signs of the disease, while HPAI leads to infections that have a 90-100% mortality rate, with deaths often occurring within 48 hours.
However, bird flu’s range has been expanding to mammalian species. For example, as of March 31, the American Veterinary Medical Association reported that there are 995 confirmed cases of avian influenza among dairy cattle, with a majority of the herds in California, the top milk-producing state in America.
“The more it moves to mammalian populations, the more likely it is to pick up a mutation where it can get into us,” science teacher Mr. Timothy Styer said. “Bird flu has killed thousands of people, but the only way that it has gotten to people has been from direct contact with the animal because it can only infect the two or three proteins in our lungs.”
Styer, who has been intensely following the different variants of bird flu since 2005, confirms that once bird flu, like
other avian flues, recognizes the 2/6 receptor, which is everywhere in the respiratory system, then bird flu will be able to be contracted when it gets around the eyes, nose, mouth, and ears.
“That’s the magical mutation they’re waiting for,” Styer said. “Once that 2/6 shift happens, then it will go person to person. Right now, it goes bird or animal to person…the more [bird flu] spends time in the mammalian population, the more it’s liable to pick up that shift, and that’s going to be an issue.”
This time right now is critical for detecting cases of the rapidly growing virus and exploring remedies. As reported by The Panther Press in November 2024, researchers were ahead of these discoveries, thus, bird flu posed less of a threat. However, The New York Times reports that the Department of Health and Human Services recently cut $12 billion towards state research on diseases like bird flu, changing the situation.
“We need people out there testing those cows and testing their population, testing to see where it is to follow the variants,” Styer said. “If we don’t, we’re not going to know when that hits the human population…If you cut back funding and you don’t have surveillance and you don’t have the ability to test, and you don’t know where they are in the variant, we’re going to be unable to know when this shift happens.”
Although treatment against type A flus exists, too much confidence is placed on these remedies. Without a close eye on this rapidly mutating disease, Styer confirms more people will be harmed than need be. For students, the funding cuts’ effect on bird flu studies foreshadow concerns about the future of research.
“I have friends who want to do research in the future, so the fact that many labs don’t have the funding to do that right now is scary,” sophomore Ming Cerdan said.
However, some students take this as an opportunity to independently seek information and increase their awareness of health-related news.
“I know that the government is concealing a lot of stuff about viruses, like bird flu, going around. I signed up for World Health Organization (WHO) email reports so I can see if there are outbreaks in the US or near here,” sophomore Maddie Schimpf said.
Although one can never predict when exactly bird flu will mutate to allow humanto-human transmission, it is important to stay updated on information about bird flu, given its rapid spread and effect.
“So, is it tomorrow? Will it be next week? Will it be a month, will it be a year? I’ve been here now since 2005, but I’m hearing more and more about bird flu recently, and the more you hear about the additional infected populations, the scarier it is,” Styer said.*
Scientists, researchers, and innovators everywhere share their grief about the Trump administration’s pullback on biomedical advancement. As a poster in Styer’s room suggests, “Science doesn’t care what you believe.” However, politics have been taking an increasingly active role in the academic liberties of scientists and students recently.
While some government website information has been restored, and some state judges have attempted to block NIH funding cuts, there has been a significant change to the scientific community.
“It’s a shame because we’re trying to educate these kids to go out and do things. We tell you to change the world,” Styer said.*
ONLINE FEATURE
Flower Show highlights nature from futuristic lens
Evelynn Lin ’25
Editor-in-Chief
For two weekends in early March, the inside of the Philadelphia Convention Center was decked with creative and colorful flower exhibitions, prize-winning plants, and vendors selling food and flower bouquets.*
BEAUTY IN THE DETAILS • Designer Jennifer Reed worked alongside her team and family to create and showcase an exhibition highlighting the importance of various plants and animals in our local ecosystems for the Philadelphia Flower Show’s two-weekend long event. PHOTO: EVELYNN LIN
OPINIONS
Political discrepancies, environmental challenges place Earth Day on back burner
Earth Day, celebrated annually on April 22, serves as a reminder of the urgent need to prioritize environmental issues.
Morgan Matthews ’28 Reporter
As environmental challenges intersect with bold political decisions and modern trends, it is essential to acknowledge Earth Day’s significance without social or political inhibitions.
Earth Day sprang from the early 1970s due to the increasing awareness surrounding environmental issues such as pollution and deforestation, issues that are still prevalent today.
This influx of ecological passion paved the way for both the Clean Air Act, which established national air quality standards, and the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which enforces environmental regulations.
These two pieces of landmark legislation ushered in an era of environmental understanding and investment.
Fast forward to today, and things seem to be heading more precariously.
With the takeover of the Trump administration, there has been a significant shift in the attitude toward environmental policy, often prioritizing industrial growth over ecological necessities.
In fact, on Earth Day 2019, President Donald Trump issued a message praising a “strong market economy” rather than advocating for climate activism and the urgent need to make change. This ignorant economic mindset fosters negative ecological results.
The current administration’s unique approach to environmental issues is in stark contrast to what we have seen in previous years from the White House, leading Americans to question the future of ecological legislation and environmental health as a whole; roughly 36% of Americans foolishly believe that climate change will not cause harm to citizens in the future.
Trump started off his presidential term with a bang; from rolling back over 125 environmental regulations to promoting fossil fuel production, the administration’s actions have already left lasting impacts on global health.
One particularly impactful policy has been the imposition of tariffs on imported goods, which include many clean energy technologies. With the intent to boost domestic production,
What does Earth Day mean to members of the Strath Haven community?
“From a political standpoint, it’s a really interesting time for Earth Day. With a government that doesn’t seem to want to protect the environment and wants to do everything good for business, they are increasing the ability of oil companies to drill and decreasing our access to public parks. Earth Day is probably a good reminder that the Clean Air Act makes it so we can all breathe, the Clean Water Act makes it so we can swim in a river, and we should cherish those things.”
-Mr. Jeffrey Kahn
these tariffs have disrupted worldwide supply chains, raising the costs of ecofriendly technologies and hindering environmental growth.
Notably, this past January, Trump signed an executive order to formally withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement, a global pact targeted towards lowering greenhouse gas emissions.
As one of the leading producers of greenhouse gas emissions, this bold move not only jeopardizes the environmental progress of the United States but also of the world as a whole.
This culture of environmental disregard has been fueled by another prominent component of the modern world: social media.
With social media’s total domination over everyday lives, we are constantly exposed to wasteful trends that are normalized to the point of blind conformity.
This pattern of materialistic gluttony is fueled by overproduction that leads to resource depletion and pollution.
These trends often promote materialism and overconsumption, encouraging
Outdoor learning is necessary during spring
“[Earth Day] means making sure that that we acknowledge climate change, global warming, and the fact that we need to keep the environment clean.”
-Connor Nuschke ’28
users to purchase frivolous products that ambassadors have been paid to endorse.
Large corporations have weaponized this method on Earth Day itself.
“Greenwashing” refers to the capitalistic approach that many large companies employ, using deceitful marketing tactics to fool consumers into believing in their facade of false sustainability.
It is estimated that 5.07 billion people globally use social media. In this era of total technology domination, this high number will likely continue to grow.
Instead of acting as blind bystanders to the ecological destruction taking place on our screens, we must use this platform as an opportunity to create change.
The responsibility to protect our planetary health does not fall on the shoulders of one particular political or social group. Rather, this is the duty of every single individual on earth, with no regard for one’s political or social inhibitions.
As Earth Day passes this year, let us realize our responsibility to protect our planet. We must remember that we all have the power to contribute to a bright environmental future.*
“Earth Day is a day that is dedicated to preserving the earth. You gather as many people as you can to celebrate trying to preserve the earth and make it a better place.”
-Mikolaj Paciorek ’28
With warmer temperatures and plenty of outdoor space, why are students stuck inside classrooms all day?
Claire Salera ’27
Detours & Opinions Editor
Picture this: It’s 75 degrees, UV seven, the sun is shining, and flowers bloom—but you’re stuck inside a sultry classroom during fourth block. This is the reality for students almost daily. While outside learning seems valuable, teachers have limited teaching time, strict deadlines, and classroom technology to use, so they keep their classes inside. There is a strong misconception that the great outdoors is too distracting for students when the opposite could actually be true.
Our school is surrounded by a lot of green space, from the grassy hills by the baseball fields to the wooded area near the pond. According to an article by Kirsten Weir for the American Psychological Association, this green space itself has been proven to support student mental health. She explains the results of a University of Chicago study.
“Green spaces near schools promote cognitive development in children and green views near children’s homes promote self-control behaviors…being exposed to natural environments improves working memory, cognitive flexibility, and attentional control,” Weir wrote. Our school certainly has no limit on outdoor working space. From benches to fields to outdoor lunch tables and even a pond onsite, there are plenty of locations for students to focus on schoolwork while getting their dosage of vitamin D. So, why aren’t these spaces being put to use more?
Sophomore English teacher Mrs. Katelyn Scaffidi understands that several factors affect the possibility of
outdoor learning.
“A lot of times we assume students would benefit from working at a desk…also because of safety concerns [outside],” Scaffidi said.
However, this is not always the case. Students work at a stationary desk for more than six hours every day, which
gets tedious after a while. This is likely detrimental to student performance, which is why teachers incorporate group work and movement into their lesson plans. The same concept of getting out of desks should be applied to working outside for a change of scenery.
Besides, there are countless advantages to being in the great outdoors, which sophomore Laila Roe notes.
“When I work outside, it’s always nicer; there’s more space, and it feels more calming than when I’m inside a classroom,” Roe said.
According to the University of California Davis Health, going outside during the school day even has long-term health benefits.
“Studies also show that being in nature has a positive effect on our bodies by reducing cortisol levels, muscle tension, and demands on our cardiovascular systems (lowers heart rate and blood pressure). Being out in nature often may lead to lower rates of heart disease,” the site states.
These benefits of outdoor learning significantly outweigh any concerns. If being outside helps student performance, then this is something that should be taken seriously and prioritized. Perhaps requiring outdoor learning on a biweekly basis or creating more outdoor learning spaces, like outside of the trailers, could benefit students.
“Outside, [students] have more energy…they’re more likely to participate,” Scaffidi said.*
LEARNING OUTDOORS • Freshman English students work outdoors during fourth block on Wednesday, April 23. PHOTO: ISAAC LOTHROP
District should remember to do little things well
The old adage of the Cross Country and track coach provides valuable lessons for all in our district.
Clark Kerkstra ‘27 Haven Happenings Editor
Track and Field Coach Glenn Venturini has a saying: ‘Do the little things well.’
Venturini frequently reminds his athletes of this, emphasizing the importance of doing the little things well, like eating well or stretching after a run. In his view, when you do the little things well, the big things come easily.
To some on his teams, the phrase can seem like a tired cliche, but its wisdom encompasses far more than running. Indeed, it is the things often ignored that make Haven tick. Things like the buses that transport countless students to school in the morning, or the little traditions that give meaning to each day or class. It is people like the crossing guards who ensure kids get to school safely, and the maintenance staff who clean the school daily. People like the cafeteria staff who feed many students daily, or the support staff who help make everything run smoothly.
Recently, Haven’s Hi-Q team delivered a big victory in the national championship, prevailing over teams from Alabama, Wisconsin, and Washington. But from the perspective of someone on the Hi-Q team, credit is due to many more than those on the team themselves. After all, school was canceled due to a storm the day of the match, and if it weren’t for Mr. Michael Spence, the technology support staff member who came in on a day when schools were closed to help set up the web call, the Hi-Q team may not have been able to participate in the national contest.
Hi-Q is a competition about the little things, and our team wouldn’t have had the success we did if district staff and the team itself had not excelled at the little things. What would have happened if our faculty adviser, Mr. Rothenbach, hadn’t sporadically quizzed me on what a writ of mandamus was prior to our semifinal match? What would have happened if the Mock Trial coach had not coincidentally told me a week before the exact quote
from Shakespeare that won us the Delco Championship in double overtime? What would have happened if Mr. Spence had not been there that day to assist us with the technical details of the match? What would have happened if Principal Benzing wasn’t willing to open up the school building and conference room when the district was closed?
Haven’s Hi-Q victory was a culmination of all these things–and a lot of hard work. The same lessons can be applied to district leadership. The firestorm of public dissent last summer was the result of too many initiatives being pushed too quickly, such that many teachers and community members felt left behind.
This was a fact acknowledged by our previous superintendent before his departure, admitting he was “guilty of running a marathon at a sprinter’s pace.” But now, with last summer distant in our minds and the new superintendent’s arrival imminent, a lot of planning is going on.
And not just little plans. Comprehensive plans. Capital plans. Strategic plans.
These plans aren’t necessarily bad things. They can be good things. Great, even. But we should ensure that in endeavoring to achieve perfection in the future, we don’t ignore the present.
Amid all these grand plans, we should remember to do the little things well. The vastness and size of these plans forget that often, the most good for those at the school right now can come from simple quality-of-life improvements.
Things like giving most of the school a two-hour delay when Keystone testing is happening, a change implemented by Interim Superintendent Dr. James Scanlon this year. The change was small. It was simple. And yet, many students felt better rested and more productive for the shorter school day—suggesting that perhaps the district should revisit exploring a bell
DEI is essential to quality of education
schedule that is healthier for teenagers. Things like delaying the school start time, a change that the previous administration indicated to The Panther Press they were open to. It may not exactly be a little change, but it need not be a gargantuan one either. Yes, perhaps there exist significant logistical obstacles to moving back the time by an hour as is considered optimal. But even a delay of 20 minutes could provide a boon to students, and alleviate some of the logistical difficulties that come with ending school later.
Plans for significant change are important and can be a crucial part of moving forward as a district. However, it’s important to make sure that teachers and staff are treated well along the way. It’s important to keep an eye out for quality-of-life changes that help everyone. And students must get a voice in district decision-making. There’s nothing wrong with running a marathon, but it makes sense to get eight hours of sleep before doing so. Because, as the iconic Glenn Venturini maintains, when you do the little things well, the big things come easily.*
In a time where diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives are quickly fleeting, what do high school and college students have to lose?
Dyllan Leaf ’28
Reporter
Amid the revocation of several executive orders designed to support minorities, it is important to remember why they were there in the first place.
Within the next few years, many of Haven’s students will head off to college, starting a new phase in their lives. I personally marvel at the prospect of diversifying my worldviews by meeting people different from myself. But what makes this kind of experience so important, and why is it at risk?
A 2022 article from the American Psychological Association gives insight into how beneficial diversity in a college setting can be. It states that “an inclusive classroom also provides global academic benefits, such as improved critical thinking and higher overall achievement levels for both majority and minority group members.”
If diverse environments have been known to create higher levels of achievement for majority and minority members, there is no basis on which they should be considered at all negative.
DEI initiatives originated in the 1960s during the height of the Civil Rights Movement. It was proposed as a means of protecting minority groups against discrimination when applying for universities or opportunities in the workforce.
As it has progressed, DEI has flourished into a means of support and representation for all sorts of minorities. This includes racial/ethnic minorities, the LGBTQ+ community, and those with physical or intellectual disabilities.
Culturally responsive initiatives in education benefit all students, not just those who belong to minority groups, but those who do not as well.
Recently, the Trump Administration has given American schools a deadline to abolish diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices. If they refuse to certify their compliance, they risk losing federal funding. This poses a threat to both high school and collegiate education.
As of now, Pennsylvania has signaled that the state Department of Education will not be instructing schools and districts to end DEI programs. Chalkbeat reports that Pennsylvania’s Acting Secretary of Education Carrie Rowe wrote school district leaders that “no further action is required” at this time, because the Trump administration did not define what would be considered “illegal DEI.”
According to an article by Psychology Today, humans tend to see the world through a particular “lens” that affects how we view the situations around us. This unintentional bias may affect the amount of empathy we show towards situations we have not been exposed to.
This is precisely why exposure to people who may be different from us is so important—it effectively helps to minimize the “lens’s” tint.
In my experience, some of the most successful groups have been those composed of all sorts of people from various backgrounds and identities. As I’ve seen it, diversity encourages people to think outside the box and establish new ways of thinking.
According to a 2020 United States Government Census Bureau report, 42.2 percent of Americans identify as non-White, up 6.9 percent since 2010.
This 42.2 percent are just some of the people that DEI policies have worked to protect from prejudice, as well as support in embracing their cultural identities.
As of 2023, the Supreme Court struck down affirmative action, effectively forbidding the use of race as a factor for college admissions.
Initial data from several universities shows that admission rates have since decreased for several minorities, particularly African Americans.
Now, fast-forward to 2025, and DEI is being completely erased from the foundation of organizations nationwide. For schools specifically, many programs founded on the importance of diversity are at risk of defunding.
As it has progressed over the years, DEI has come to be a means of protection for all sorts of minorities. This includes racial/ethnic minorities, the LGBTQ+ community, and those with physical or intellectual disabilities.
In his executive order on January 20, 2025, President Trump lifted several previously initiated orders put in place to advance racial equity and support LGBTQ+ identifying individuals.
“The injection of ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ (DEI) into our institutions has corrupted them by replacing hard work, merit, and equality with a divisive and dangerous preferential hierarchy,” the order states.
On the surface, the intention of this is to remove any program that discriminates against people based on their race. In theory, this is the correct approach.
However, the issue with this is the fine line between removing programs considered to be racially discriminatory versus removing programs that promote cultural diversity and support.
It is entirely unjust to threaten programs that encourage Americans, specifically teens and young adults, to not only embrace their cultures but to share them with their communities.
Culturally responsive initiatives in education benefit all students, not just those who belong to minority groups, but those who do not as well.
Exposing youth to cultures and identities outside of their own fosters growth-mindedness and empathy. No matter who we are and how we identify ourselves, we can all benefit from growing to understand and appreciate other people in their unique identities.
As our world changes, an inclusive environment is essential to success in an increasingly diverse society.*
TRUE LEADER • Boys Track and Field head coach Glenn Venturini smiles at the camera at the Boys Track Delco Championship on May 1, 2024. PHOTO: CLARK KERKSTRA
Softball brings on new JV squad
Larger team brings positive change, new opportunities, and challenges while changing the culture of the squad.
Fiona Seale ’28 Reporter
New dugouts and batting cages aren’t the only changes that await the softball team this year.
Softball has been the only Haven sport with only a varsity team for four years due to a lack of participation. However, with factors like a strong incoming class and a growing sport, the extra lane of batting cages the school decided to add will be put to good use.
It’s only head coach Michael DeAngelo’s second year helping out with this team, but he understands why a JV squad is so important.
“In previous seasons, a lot of girls did not come out for the high school team from 8th grade. Having that JV program and knowing that, even if they’re not a varsity starter, they can still play a sport that I love, I think more girls will try out from now on,” DeAngelo said.
The tryout process was the first big change for the coaching staff, as there was a bigger turnout than usual. 26 girls tried out for the Haven softball team this year.
As DeAngelo points out, it was the perfect number for two teams.
“This year, there was a strong freshman class, about 12 or so freshmen coming out. It was important to emphasize that we’re cutting no one,” DeAngelo. “When you have people coming out, there’s no reason to say no to anyone, especially when you’re trying to rebuild that JV program.”
One of the biggest issues with the oneteam model is that many players don’t get enough playing time. The new JV squad can now offer more opportunities to some players.
“When I found out there was a JV team, I was very happy because I remember last year I had some friends on the team, and they always said that they would sit on the bench, and only the same couple of people would play,” freshman swing softball player Willow Huellemier said.
A new JV team refocuses the girls’ softball program towards establishing and maintaining a comfortable environment that athletes will want to be a part of and
First Haven girls wrestling season wraps up, foreshadows promising future
This past season has sparked many girls’ interests in wrestling, providing a place for girls to explore this upcoming sport.
Lavanya Dixit ’27 Sports Editor
This past winter season, Haven introduced the new girls wrestling team. The team consisted of eight girls, seven of whom were freshmen and one sophomore, and was coached by Tony Gilliano and Paul Somaru.
return to.
“When girls don’t get into games, they’re not likely to come back next year,” DeAngelo said. “Allowing freshmen who come out who may not get to see varsity action to play softball means they’re going to continue with that sport throughout their high school career.”
Concerns about the new JV team include whether or not other schools in the area will also have a JV team to field against Haven.
“I’m sure in the future, there might be a few less, but so far, we’ve only had one school that didn’t have a JV team,” freshman JV softball player Izzy Bean said.
With increased playing time, developing team camaraderie, and those 12 freshmen highlighting the growing sport, Haven Softball is evolving, creating new opportunities for athletes to come.
“We’ll watch the eighth graders across the field, and there’s just so many, so I think there’s a lot more opportunities coming up next,” Bean said.*
The team finished as a top 10 team in District 1. Additionally, not only did the team have a successful time during the season, but the girls persisted through postseason as well, with sophomore Lane Harrington and freshman Kai Czaplicki qualifying for Districts, and Czaplicki earning the District Champion title. Both Czaplicki and Harrington qualified for Regionals, with Harrington moving forward to earn 6th place at States.
Loads of hard work led to their success, however. Aside from their daily training and workouts, the team had the additional challenge of recruiting new members and finding tournaments to compete in.
“It started off kind of rocky with just a few tournaments scheduled, but our coaches worked really hard and ended up getting us a lot more tournaments unexpectedly,” Harrington said. “We had a few less than the guys, but overall, it was a very well-rounded schedule.”
The turnout for the new team was also better than anticipated. Harrington confirms that the team itself was very well-rounded, allowing for a lot of learning potential throughout the entirety of the season.
Czaplicki emphasizes the importance and excitement of each practice.
“I think the atmosphere was always really fun. Practice was never something I was dreading during the day, and neither were meets or tournaments,”
SHUGx qualifies for nationals for second year
Czaplicki said. “I think our coaches and our team made the atmosphere something to look forward to.”
The team aims to increase involvement in the sport, hoping to find aspiring girls wrestlers in both the incoming freshmen and current high schoolers.
“I definitely want to see more people on the team. We had about eight this year, which was still a lot for a firstyear wrestling team, but I definitely think we can get more throughout the years that we have the team. Just more commitment and more love for the sport is all we can ask for,” Czaplicki said.
Overall, after the PIAA’s sanctioning of girls wrestling, Haven’s successful season opens the door to many more successful seasons down the line.
“Right now, women’s wrestling is the fastest growing sport in the country, and on top of that, PA is arguably the toughest state to wrestle in…as far as brand new programs go, it truly couldn’t have gone better,” Somaru said.*
The girls ultimate frisbee team is eager to prepare for the national competition after winning YULA invitationals.
Kaitlyn Ho ’26
Managing Editor of Print
n the weekend of March 22-23, SHUGx piled into their cars to Arlington, Virginia, returning home with a national qualifying win from a major East Coast tournament after winning 12-8 against Jordan High School.
“I saw my teammate go into the end zone and just chucking it, and when she caught it, I remember just standing there, taking it in and just crying,” spirit captain and senior Violet Abrahamsson said. “I felt so proud of the team. We had all these games with the sun beating down on us, and it was perfect.”
Bids for nationals can come in multiple forms, not just from winning tournaments in the systematic way other sports do. Last year, their ability to qualify for Nationals was based on ranking and analysis of previous games. This year, they were determined to win the qualifying tournament instead of relying on ranking chances alone. According to team captains, seniors Lily Hodges and Katie Stack, YULA (Youth Ultimate League of
Arlington) is the biggest tournament on the East Coast for high school frisbee. It requires an application and is invitation-based only.
“So winning this is insane. It’s really impressive. And I think Katie and I looked at each other, and there’s a photo of us, a really fun photo of me and Katie just screaming at each other in the purest delight,” Hodges said.
Ultimate frisbee player junior Tess Kelly had felt the pressure during YULA’s final game, even with their lead. The opposing team had been on a steady comeback since the score had been 10-5, Panthers.
“There’s always uncertainty,” Kelly said. “I think people got, at least, I got kind of scared when they started scoring three points in a row. We have one more point to go, and then this is done, but they keep scoring, so if they keep scoring, they’ll win.”
By the time the game was 11-8, they were approaching a hard cap. This meant the set time limit, which in this game was 80 minutes, was almost up. Even though the win had been cemented, the captains wanted to get just
one more point.
“I told Katie, and then we purposely kind of kept it on the down low, because we just don’t want anybody to get in their head,” Hodges said. “We also want to finish out our game in a good way. And at that point, they had technically been on a comeback. So having the relief of the hard cap go on was very nice, but also it was like, at least in my mind, I wanted us to get the last point.”
On the sidelines, the boys’ ultimate frisbee team and spirit captain senior Tianyue Wang leapt off their feet to cheer for SHUGx when the final score was announced.
“I remember being like, ‘Oh my god, I’m going to crash out,’” Wang said. “And then I found out that hard cap had gone out, and I just started like, it wasn’t sobbing, but I did tear up, because I was like, ‘Oh my god, we’re done. We’re going to Nationals. This is so exciting.’”
The High School National Invite will be held in Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania, from June 13-14.*
VICTORY • Freshman Maddy Lawson gets her hand raised after emerging victorious from her match at a home meet against Lower Merion and Pottstown on December 18, 2024.
PHOTO: KATE PLOWS
RISING STAR • Sophomore Laila Taimanglo winds up for a perfect big time hit. The brand new JV softball team took to the field one of their first games of the 2025 season.
PHOTO: MATTEO VENTRESCA
Car Talk: Teacher shares spontaneous backstory of blue Jeep Gladiator
Health and physical education teacher Mr. Steve Woolery describes his relationship with Blue.
Evelynn Lin ’25 Editor-in-Chief
Glistening under the spring sun in the teacher’s lot, right by the unmowed grass dotting the hill, sits a bright blue, sleek Jeep. Its dashboard contains a few scattered ducks, and its back is open from time to time, holding a Harley Davidson and Vespa-like scooter.
This Jeep, a 2021 blue Jeep Gladiator, is occasionally nicknamed Blue after the dinosaur from Jurassic Park and belongs to health and physical education teacher Mr. Steve Woolery.
Woolery originally owned a big, yellow Hummer and wanted to trade it in for a Ford F-150. However, this plan did not go accordingly.
“They [Ford Dealership] basically lowballed me so bad that I felt insulted, so I told the person, ‘Do you see that blue Jeep across the street at that Jeep dealership? I’m going to leave here and I’m going to go buy that right now,’” Woolery said. “And I actually got in my car, my boys and I smiled, we went over, went in, and I said, ‘I want to buy that,’ and I literally bought it that day.”
Woolery’s Gladiator contains a convertible feature, four-wheel drive, and a lift kit.
“Once it gets warm out, it has four doors that actually all come off and the top two
panels come off and the back comes off, so it is fully converted,” Woolery said. “I’ve never done this, but the windshield actually folds down as well so you can do a full sand journey.”
With such exciting features come some danger built into the very foundation of the Jeep.
“I think that when they built the Jeeps, they extended the back and put no weight, so when I’ve been driving around curves, the whole tail slides around,” Woolery said. “Everyone else at your age would probably think it’s cool because they would say, ‘I’m drifting,’ but unfortunately, I’m not drifting, I’m close to crashing.”
Woolery is considering eventually trading in his Jeep for the F-150 in a few years to buy and tow a boat. For the time being, though, he looks forward to driving in the converted Jeep during the summer and gives advice to younger Jeep drivers.
“I love the summertime vibe of heading to the beach, my surfboard in the back, and I’m hauling my jet skis behind it and just enjoying it,” Woolery said. “As a young teen, if you get the opportunity to drive a Jeep, please convert it, take it around during the sunny days. Let it breathe, let it have fun, and take those tops off.”*
RECIPE OF THE ISSUE: Apple Fritters
As a fan of Trader Joe’s, I recreated one of their classics: apple fritters. Try out the recipe below!
Luci DiBonaventura ’25
Detours & Opinions Editor
Apple fritters are a simple and tasty recipe.
Ingredients:
For the dough:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast (1 packet)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
2/3 cup warm milk (about 110°F)
2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
For the apple filling:
2 medium Granny Smith apples, peeled and diced
2 tbsp unsalted butter
2 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Pinch of salt
Instructions:
MOVIE REVIEW:
“Snow White” plot as empty as
its theater
Live-action film sparked controversy before release.
Luci DiBonaventura ’25 Detours & Opinions Editor
Mirror, mirror on the wall, is the new movie “Snow White” worth watching at all?
“Snow White” is a liveaction remake of the 1937 animated Disney film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, starring the upand-coming actress Rachel Zegler. It received criticism before its premiere.
According to Screen Rant, the movie’s budget was 270 million dollars, and its box office earnings on the first weekend were 14 million, making it a major flop.
1. Make the dough: In a bowl, combine warm milk and yeast. Let sit for 5 minutes until foamy. Add sugar, melted butter, egg, and vanilla. Stir to combine. Mix in flour, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg until a soft dough forms. Knead by hand or with a mixer for 5–6 minutes until smooth and elastic. Place in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled (about 1 hour).
2. Make the apple filling: In a skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add apples, brown sugar, cinnamon, and a pinch of salt. Cook for 5-7 minutes until the apples are tender and slightly caramelized. Let cool completely.
3. Form the fritters: Roll the dough out into a rough rectangle (about ½ inch thick).
Scatter the apple filling over the dough, then fold the dough over itself a few times (like folding a letter) to mix the apples in. Roughly chop the folded dough into 3-inch blobs, pressing each one gently into a round fritter shape.
4. Let rest for 20–30 minutes.
5. Cook in the oven at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes.*
The movie is about a young princess who lost her parents and was raised isolated in her kingdom. Fleeing from the Evil Queen, Snow White seeks refuge from the seven dwarfs: Dopey, Bashful, Grumpy, Sneezy, Happy, Doc, and Sleepy.
Throughout the movie, there are several dance and song sequences. Overall, the singing is very well performed. Zegler does a fantastic job with her vocals and expressing emotions through her singing. However, the storyline fell short. While the acting wasn’t terrible, it wasn’t great either. The movie is definitely overhated, but some parts could have been better.
One of the major problems people
had with the movie was an inaccurate depiction of Snow White. Many people believe Zegler is too dark for the role of Snow White. Many people on apps such as TikTok or Reddit have said things that made it to mainstream news platforms of the film, such as “Snow White’s skin isn’t pale enough.” Rachel is of majority white and of Polish descent. I don’t think her race was the problem, but the character design. The costumes and hair fell short and didn’t encapsulate Snow White’s original design.
In addition, people were upset that dwarfs weren’t cast to play the role of the seven dwarfs and that CGI was instead used.
Peter Dinklage, an actor with dwarfism, commented in an interview with BBC on the representation of actors with dwarfism playing dwarfs in the movie, saying that the dwarfs “living in a cave” were moving “backward.”
The movie showcases Zegler’s commendable performance, breathing new life into the iconic character. However, the film’s visual shortcomings and external controversies have overshadowed its strengths, leading to a polarized reception among audiences and critics alike.*
WOOLERY AND BLUE • Health and physical education teacher Mr. Steve Woolery stands with his 2021 blue Jeep Gladiator on March 27, 2025. PHOTO: EVELYNN LIN
TRADER JOE’S DELIGHT • Apple fritters made by Luci DiBonaventura. PHOTO: LUCI DIBONAVENTURA
READING REVIEW: Students offer April book recommendations
Hear from four school community members about their book recommendations from the beginning of Spring.
Evie Fernandez ’27 Haven Happenings Editor
Sophomore Caroline Boerth recommends:
“Pet Sematary” by Stephen King (Scribner).
“It’s about this family who moves to Maine, and they find a pet cemetery with all the dead pets from the town, and strange things happen,” Boerth said. “I like the constant suspense of the book and how you really never know what’s going to happen. There are so many plot twists.”
Junior Giana Gliko recommends:
“On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness” by Andrew Peterson (Waterbrook).
“It’s about this family, and they have three kids, the Agape family. They live in this fantasy world that’s under occupation by these evil people who are ruling. The first book is very much the set up to the rest of the conflict that’s in the rest of the books, where the kids find out that they’re royalty, and they go through this series of adventures throughout the book that are sort of their own fault, and sometimes not. But all of it serves to break down the sheltered life that they’ve been living and makes them realize that there’s a world that’s a lot bigger than them, and they learn a whole lot,” Gliko said. “I really liked the theme, so I think that was the biggest thing for me. There’s sacrifice and family, love and adventure, and all of that.”
Sophomore Kay Liberi recommends:
“All the Light We Cannot See” by Anthony Doerr (Scribner).
“It’s about this young girl who is blind, and her name is Marie Leblanc. She’s French. It takes place during World War II, and she has to take refuge in her uncle’s house in Saint Marlowe. It’s her story, but it’s also the story of Werner, and he’s this really bright German boy who is accepted into this big-time military school. They have their separate stories, but eventually they end up meeting, and it’s just a really great story,” Liberi said. “I really liked the characters. I thought they were really well written, especially Werner, but I also thought it had a really good message, and it really resonated with me. It was like knowing when to stand up to authority and knowing when to protect your family members and the people you love.”
I recommend:
“youthjuice” by E. K. Sathue (Soho Press).
This book is a horror that follows Sophia Bannion as she starts her new job at HEBE, a beauty company in New York. She’s obsessed with the idea of not aging, and she’s been trying to break her awful nail-biting habit. As she climbs the ranks at her new company, a 30-year-old new hire among seas of 20 freshly hired interns, she’s asked by her boss to test a mysterious moisturizer and take notes about its performance in a special journal. Follow her story as she goes on to realize the dark secret of HEBE’s products.*
ON THE SEARCH: The best fried chicken in Delaware County
Eat to your taste buds’ desire, and enjoy your mouth on fire.
Savvas Zeibekis ’26 Reporter
As a self-proclaimed fried chicken aficionado, I took it upon myself and three of my friends to find the best fried chicken place in Delaware County, Pennsylvania. In the past, I’ve enjoyed fried chicken from places in Philadelphia, examples including Asad’s Hot Chicken, Nanu’s Hot Chicken, Dave’s Hot Chicken, Bonchon, and others. However, I’ve never explored a good local spot for fried chicken, and I think it’s time to find a few.
To find out the best places in Delco for fried chicken, I had to get only the most authentic opinion, and that, of course, was Haven’s student body.
I went around lunch asking for recommendations and received some answers.
Most interviewees responded with Popeyes, a restaurant chain known for their flavorful fried chicken. On the other hand, a minority of interviewees would respond with other places, mostly local businesses.
Every establishment’s chicken is judged on crisp, taste, and juiciness. To maintain fairness between the ratings, a fried chicken mixed entree will be ordered at every establishment.
Popeyes: 7.1/10
First, we went to Popeyes. A popular fast food chain across the world, known for their fried chicken and delightful mix of flavors.
I would give Popeyes’ fried chicken a 7.1/10. It’s an inexpensive, reliable choice. It has great crisp, great flavor, and decent juiciness.
My main critique of Popeyes chicken is the overbearing sweetness of the
breading. It’s just a little too much for me, but if you enjoy an incredibly sweet and flavorful breading, Popeyes is for you.
Junior Jack Logue gave the chicken a 6.5/10.
“I think the breading is really good, it’s got a really nice crisp, it’s not too thick… But the actual chicken itself isn’t amazing, it’s normal, pretty standard. You can’t go wrong,” Logue said.
Our average rating of this chicken was 7.1/10. It’s not a bad choice for someone looking for fried chicken on a Friday night, but there’s better out there.
Crown Chicken: 7.1/10
Next up was Crown Chicken, a business located in Chester.
An extremely moist and crispy chicken, I gave this chicken a 6.8/10. It’s not a go-to place for me, but it’s still not a bad choice. However, it lacks in the flavor department, and is a bit too juicy for me. There’s dry chicken and juicy chicken, but this chicken crossed the juicy line. That, and the average flavor, hold this chicken back from being a 7/10 or above.
Logue, however, thought otherwise, holding it in high regard. He gave the chicken an 8.
“[It] had a nice juiciness, nice crispiness, the grease was a little bit much. They could’ve toned it back a little bit,” Logue said. “I just appreciated the flavor of the actual chicken more.”
Our average rating of this chicken was 7.1/10.
Crown Chicken is a specific niche of chicken: the ultra-juicy, crispy chicken. It’s an acquired taste, and if you like that type of chicken, then it’s for you.
Crisp Chik’n: 8.7/10
Last and certainly not least, Crisp Chik’n. It is a business located in West Chester and Lansdowne.
Our average rating of Crisp Chik’n’s fried chicken was 8.7/10.
Their fried chicken was phenomenal. I’d heard about this place from people in school before, and I’ve been told that people swear by the chicken. After trying it, I see exactly why. This doesn’t come without drawbacks, though.
Most importantly, the taste was amazing. It was juicy, tender, flavorful, and everything you could want in chicken.
The second I took a bite, I knew that it was the best chicken out of the places we went to. On top of this, this was the only place that had an original sauce, and the sauce was on point.
Ironically, the only factor that held this chicken from being in the 9-10 range was the crisp. It wasn’t crispy compared to the other businesses, and was more of a softer, flavorful chicken.
Junior Mikey Maltese, who gave the chicken an overall 8/10, had a great comparison for the crisp.
“The crispiness was just not there. It was a little bit crunchy, kind of like soggy cornflakes… The crispiness [alone], I’d give that like a six,” Maltese said.
All three options are great for your fried chicken needs, but the definite favorite was Crisp Chik’n. Ultimately, it all comes down to your specific preference of chicken.*
CHICKEN BOX • 1. Mixed box from Popeyes. 2. Mixed fried chicken box from Crown Chicken. 3. Tenders from Crisp Chick’n. PHOTOS: SAVVAS ZEIBEKIS
APRIL Crossword
Luci DiBonaventura ‘25
Detours & Opinions Editor
Across
5. Only planet to spin clockwise
7. Singer __ Khan
9. Colorful water bottle brand
10. Popular late 90s toy with fur and light up eyes
11. Satirical show first made with paper
12. Tiny Mexican breed dog
16. Ring-tailed animal
17. Sparkly dust
18. Caramel and chocolate candy bar
19. When a bubble hits a blade of grass
Down
1. Actor who plays Frank Reynolds
2. Squeeze
3. Band that released album “Dookie”
4. “April showers bring May___”
6. Movie parody of the horror world
8. Restaurant named after the movie “Forrest Gump”
11. Heart, diamond, club
12. Popular cleaning product brand
13. Fake set of hair
14. H2O
15. Mascot for Easter
19. What you shouldn’t do with your food
Cheese Corner:
Cotswold, the perfect pub cheese
This is the cheesiest column you’ll see in this issue!
Roland Rennick-Zuefle ’27
Contributor
Welcome back to the Cheese Corner. While we legally aren’t allowed to try Cotswold cheese with alcohol, we can still learn about and enjoy this delightful orange-ish English pub cheese.
A variation on England’s double Gloucester cheese made unique by its addition of onions and chives, Cotswold has a strong taste and aftertaste, making it feel like a more herbal and tangy but no less exquisite version of cheddar, although with a less firm texture.
Cotswold cheese’s base, double Gloucester, is made in England’s Gloucestershire region using fullcream milk from cows and vegetarian rennet. One of the primary features of the cheese, its orange coloring, is added through the coloring agent, annatto. Since as far back as the 16th century, the wives of English farmers have been making double Gloucester.
Further development would ensue in Gloucestershire and the Cotswolds region as herbs were added to create its distinct taste and speckled look.
The particular variant I had came from Long Clawson, United Kingdom, where it is theorized that more cheddar was used in the development of the formula. However, it differs from cheddar in its earlier ripening and creation process. Lower amounts of acids are used on the salted curds in pre-molding, causing it to take at least 24 hours, much longer
ORANG-ISH DELIGHT • A sample of orange-ish Cotswold alongside pepperoni. Both pepperoni and crackers are great with Cotswold cheese.
than cheddar’s seven hours. The curds are distinct in that their salting occurs at a higher-than-average pH of around six. The entire process of the cheese’s creation lasts around five months.
Cotswold cheese is popular in England’s pubs, where patrons enjoy it with dark bread and some adult drinks. However, if you’re under 21, having it with bread or even crackers can make for an acceptable and legal alternative.
The Cotswold, produced from Long Clawson and sold at the Swarthmore CO-OP, provides a distinct taste that, as long as you like onions, I could not recommend enough.*
CRITTER CORNER: Honey, Pippin, Stella
Nate Mitchell talks about his bond with his two dogs and tortoise.
Lavanya Dixit ’27 Sports Editor
For this publication’s regular feature of the Critter Corner, sophomore Nate Mitchell discusses his bond with his dogs and his tortoise.
Q. What are your pets’ names?
A. One is named Honey, and one is named Pippin, and then I have a tortoise named Stella. The dogs are both cockapoos, so half poodle, half cocker spaniel, and the tortoise. We’re not entirely sure, but we think it’s a Russian breed.
Q. How long have you had your pets?
A. Our dogs have been around since I was in kindergarten, so they are about ten years old at this point, and they recently turned ten. Then, my tortoise, I’ve had since fourth grade.
Q. How did you get your pets?
A. We had a Labrador, and he died of cancer. He was in our family before I was born. In kindergarten, we decided to get two more dogs. As for my tortoise, I actually found her as an egg. We found an egg floating down Crum Creek, and then we hatched it. We had to keep it in an incubator-type thing. It’s similar to when you’re incubating chicken eggs, but it’s meant for reptiles. I think it took about two months.
Q. What is your favorite thing to do with them?
A. My favorite thing to do with my dogs is probably just play with them or, you know, just sit around with them, because that’s all they really like to do. And then for my tortoise, my favorite thing to do
with her is kind of funny—I like to watch her eat because she’s really messy about it sometimes, and it’s really funny. She eats a lot of stuff…She eats a ton of fruits and vegetables, so it’s kind of fun.
Q. How would you describe your bond with them?
A. I think we have a pretty good bond. I’ve grown up with them for almost my entire life. My tortoise, I don’t know, it’s kind of hard to determine a bond with a tortoise, but I’ve had her for a long time, too.
Want to feature your pet in the next edition of Critter Corner? Stretch your paw out to strathhavenpantherpress@ gmail.com!*
TORTOISE VS THE DOGS • Nate Mitchell’s three pets: Stella the tortoise, along with Honey and Pippin the cockapoos. PHOTO: NATE MITCHELL
PHOTO: ROLAND RENNICK-ZUEFLE
A Night in Hollywood: Students attend freshman, sophomore dance
Hundreds of students spent their night dancing and listening to music with their friends.
Rebecca
Knob ’28
Contributor
The gymnasium shines in red lights and Hollywood-themed decorations. At the center of the gym, a large mosh pit of students form to dance to the upbeat tracks.
Frosh, the freshmansophomore dance, was hosted on Thursday, April 13, from 7 to 9:30 p.m. in the high school gym and followed a Hollywood theme. The annual dance is planned and hosted by the freshman and sophomore classes. Many underclassmen invite junior or senior peers to attend the dance.
“I really liked Hollywood because I feel like it’s timeless and also gives you a wide range for what outfits you wanted to wear instead of some themes where the theme is more set and less of a wide range,” sophomore Kathryn Barrett said.
A mix of pop music, rap music, and even some slow songs filled the students’ ears.
For most freshmen, it was their first time attending Frosh. For freshman Lucy Dolle, dancing together with friends made it a night to remember.
“For my first Frosh, I thought it was really fun and I just overall had an amazing time dancing with my friends and seeing everyone dressed up. My favorite part was when everyone would make a dance circle and one person would dance,” Dolle said.
Frosh gave students the opportunity to enjoy time with their upperclassmen friends.
“I had a lot of fun. I like getting pictures and I like the juniors being able to drive us around before and after,” freshman Maddie DiBona said.*
Will you go to prom with me? Students celebrate junior prom night together at King Mills
For many, junior prom was an unforgettable night of glamor, friendship, and fun.
Evelynn Lin ’25
Editor-in-Chief
Colorful dresses and polished suits with bowties blend together in a sea of students on the dance floor. On the balcony overlooking the crowd, the DJ plays upbeat music to get them dancing and smiling, sharing moments with their friends on prom night.
The Class of 2026 junior prom took place on Saturday, April 5 at Kings Mills, with 297 students attending.
“I would say it’s the best school dance out there. Good music, good DJ, and a good vibe out there,” junior Evan Tevlin said.
The Class of 2026 advisers Mrs. Beth Benzing and Ms. Carly Reid and the Class of 2026 Class Cabinet began preparations for junior prom months ahead of the event.
“The class cabinet gets involved immediately, from how we’re going to sell tickets to planning a list of songs for the DJ to how we’re going to assign seats, so it’s a fun process working with the class cabinet,” Benzing said.
Before a night of dancing, friends gather together to get ready and take photos together.
“It was pretty fun because I did it with my friends and we met at 1 p.m., we ate something together, and we did our makeup together,” junior Guixin Zhang said.
The enjoyment of junior prom leaves many eager for prom again next year.
“I’m probably looking forward to the food and, of course, getting ready. I just love the whole dressing up part of it, so that’ll be fun to do,” junior Eliza Jauregui said.
As for the Class of 2026’s senior year, plans are already underway.
“We started thinking about senior prom and then we’re going to design the senior T-shirt, so it feels like their junior year’s coming to a close,” Reid said.
“We’re already looking ahead to next year, but tonight was a really great night to embark on their junior year.”*
1. Students raise their hands in the air to the music at the Frosh dance on Thursday, March 13 in the SHHS gymnasium. MATTHEW RAMIREZ
2. Freshmen Luke Hanna and Beautiful Hamilton are all smiles as they hug at Frosh. NICOLE MACDONALD
3. Sophomores Kara Siri, Olympia Fries, and Nazirah Wilson clap to the beat of the music together at the Frosh dance. MATTHEW RAMIREZ
1. Together on the dance floor under colorful glimmering disco lights, students enjoyed the music and each other’s company during junior prom on April 5. EVELYNN LIN
2. Juniors Julia Smirnova, Audrey Sill, Daksha Nair, and Maya Hartung pose on the dance floor at junior prom at Kings Mills. EVELYNN LIN
3. Juniors Sophie Jackson and Anna Warley smile together as they pose on the dance floor. ETHAN LIN
