Oracle the senior issue
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
There’s something about the word “senior” that feels heavy and fleeting at the same time. One moment, it seemed so far away: something meant for older siblings, upperclassmen and people who had everything figured out. And now, it’s us.
It’s easy to measure time in years, semesters or report cards, but the truth is, the story started before Stratford High School. It began in elementary classrooms filled with crayons and colored pencils, in playground games and in the first friendships we didn’t yet realize would shape who we’d become.
Stratford America is more than a building or a name in a printed diploma; it’s a shared experience. Soon, we all will scatter to different colleges, careers, cities and paths that may never cross again. But even as we go our separate directions, we carry this place with us. The memories, the growth, the lessons and the connections do not disappear when we leave.
So while this issue may feel like a goodbye, it’s also a reminder: no matter where life takes us, Stratford will always be something that ties us together.
STAFF
Editor-in-Chief*
Natalie Patranella
Associate Editors*
Bella Smith
Sophia Yarborough
Online Editors*
Jacob Cobb
Hailey Wisdom
Photo Editor*
Molly Kate Minyard
Creative Director*
Reese Spradling
Reporters
Melina Banan
Foster Burton
Ryann Calvert
Aubury Craff
James Gardner
For the last time, Natalie Patranella
03 - 05
STUDENT LIFE
In Ten Years, I... Seniors predict their futures What’s Happened
A collection of photos from the last quarter
06 SPORTS
Capture the Flag
The new girls flag football team brings fresh energy to the field
07-10
SENIOR SECTION
Stratford Across America
The out-of-state post-graduation plans of the Class of 2026 Choosin’ Texas
Zoe Greene
Olivia Henderson
Jackson Hiler
Ryan McDowell
Ava McKenzie
Sebastian Mendoza
Michelle Moon
Anastasiia Petrenko
Rhea Roy
Sara Roy
Caden Stone
Claire Whalen
Adviser
Sara Boyle
*Editorial Board
The in-state destinations of the Class of 2026
12
EDITORIAL
Oracle Outlook
High school leaves students unprepared for the real world
14-15
FEATRURE
Flashback!
A look back at our senior class’ birth years Overheard
Hear what students say in the hallways Matter of Principal
Sara Guillory reflects on her first graduating class
issuu.com/thestratfordoracle
In ten years, I...
Spartan seniors predict their futures
COMPILED BY SARA ROY (9) AND ZOE GREENE (9)
“I see myself living on a ranch in the mountains of Montana with a family: a wife and kids.”
- David Hinde
“I see myself getting further with my degree in law.”
- Hailey Angel Lopez
“I see myself working as a labor and delivery nurse in Houston or Europe.”
- Abby Broussard
“I see myself in charge of a company or a form of government (I mean a house representative, or something).”
- Julio Rivera
“I see myself teaching in an elementary school hopefully back here in SBISD, teaching either 2nd or 3rd grade.”
- Ashley Payne
“I see myself running my family’s food truck and making tacos; we’re going to expand.”
- Axel Aguirre
“I see myself working as a nurse in the pediatric oncology unit.”
- Colette Taylor
“I see myself living in Colorado as a successful physical therapist.”
- Dylan Faulkner
PHOTOS BY ZOE GREENE (9) AND SARA ROY (9)
What’s Happened
A collection of photos from the last quarter
COMPILED BY SOPHIA YARBOROUGH (11) AND NATALIE PATRANELLA (12)
PHOTOS BY: MOLLY KATE MINYARD (12), BELLA SMITH (12),
Lacrosse!
CADEN STONE (11), CAMILLE WARREN (11) AND SOPHIA YARBOROUGH (11)
CAPTURETHEFLAG
The new girls flag football team brings fresh energy to the field
WRITTEN BY RYAN MCDOWELL (12) AND CADEN STONE (11)
Stratford is gearing up for its second football season of the year, and no, it’s not soccer. It’s the girls flag football team. The team is up and running. For the players, it’s not just a new sport; it’s the start of something new and incredibly exciting.
“Noticing people come out to see us play makes me feel happy,” Isabelle Malone, a junior and one of the team’s newest members,
The team brings together players from all kinds of backgrounds. You don’t even have to be passionate about football itself; it’s more
Junior Reagan Hewston found the sport scrolling through social media.
“I saw videos of people playing on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok and it just seemed very interesting,” she said.
Malone’s path was more personal; her dad played football, and she wanted to carry that love for the game into something of her own.
Malone never felt like she had the opportunity to carry out her dad’s love of the game until the girls flag football team came into shape.
On the field, the girls are figuring out how to become a team and grow into their roles. Malone lines up at cornerback on defense and wide receiver on offense. Hewston is even more versatile, willing to play wherever the team needs her, though she’s quick to add she likes “sticking to
And it’s not just the players gaining something from the organization and experience. Enaya Hawkins joined as team manager, drawn in by the chance to be part of something competitive without
having to suit up.
“Being a manager lets me support the players and be of something and fun,” Haw
One might think of football as a cutthroat sport, but flag football is an exception to that. Players describe the atmosphere as energetic, welcoming, and focused.
The flag football team has the potential and ability to welcome even more women into the football community, and have fun.
Girls flag football may just be getting started on campus, but if the first few weeks are any indication, it won’t stay under the radar for long.
Flag football is more than a sport; it’s a community, a body and a huge step in the right direction for more gender-equal sports.
PHOTOS BY CADEN STONE (11)
2026 class of
Stratford Across Stratford Across
COMPILED BY SOPHIA YARBOROUGH (11)
Alabama
Auburn University
Avery Rushing
Mac Sloan
Samford University
Ryann Calvert
University of Alabama
Meredith Burke
Emily Covington
Kenli Kiersh
London Rankin
Arizona
Grand Canyon University
Audrey Cook
Arkansas
University of Arkansas
Milla Filippov
Scarlett Glazner
Natalie Gleason
Calle Piercy
Allie Richardson
California
University of California
Berkely
Aaron Xiong
Los Angeles School of Music
Leia Perez
Loyola Marymount
University
Brynn Pera
Stanford University
Alex Chang
Colorado
Air Force Academy
Davis Kendall
University of Colorado
Denver
Keely Meeks
Claire Schneider
Florida
Florida State University
Mary McWilliams
Georgia
Savannah College of Art and Design
Tizita Crisini
Bella Smith
University of Georgia
Sophie Donnel
Rory Stepler
Indiana
Saint Mary’s College
Ava Kennard
Kansas
McPherson College
TJ Robinson
Louisiana
Louisiana State University
Miles Burdick
Southern University and A&M
College
Rory Blake
Massachusetts
Boston College
Samuel Shafael
Harvard College
Stewart Lee
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Jaeho Lee
Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Aashna Kapoor
MINNESOTA
Carleton College
Rylah Barnes
Across America Across America
Mississippi
Mississippi State University
Kenzie Bates
University of Mississippi
Brenna Laderer
Martie Montalbo
Audrey Venghaus
Montana
Montana State University
David Hinde
New York
Cornell University
Gwyn Katterhenry
Fashion Institute of Technology
Bella Stuart
North Carolina
Belmont Abbey College
Macarena Rodriguez
Pennsylvania
Carnegie Mellon University
Elliot Hamlin
Brock Hunter
Pennsylvania State University
Kenna Wong
University of Pennsylvania
Justin Tai
Ohio
Case Western Reserve University
Maddox Ottis
Oklahoma
Oklahoma State University-
Georgia Mustachio
University of Oklahoma
Berkley Baughman
Caleb Boerm
Evy Christie
Lauren Dunwoody
Ava Esparza
Caroline Heinecke
Luke Johnson
Madelyn Morris
Marissa Navarrete
Matthew Presley
Diego Ruiz
Natalee Stegent
Kyla Vazquez
Aziz Waters
Caroline White
Kenny White
Oregon
University of Oregon
Evan Hudson
Reese Spradling
Rhode Island
Providence College
Gwen Koss
South Carolina
University of South Carolina
Shamblin Melcher
Tennessee
University of Tennessee
Wade Laird
Vanderbilt University
Matthew Crummel
Nicole Delgado
Virginia
University of Virginia
Katie Hamilton
Washington and Lee University
Sydney Valentine
Washington D.C.
Gallaudet University
Anna Harper
The George Washington
University
Dawson Graham
Wisconsin
University of Wisconsin Madison
Addison Teixeira
Gap Year
Charlotte Clearman
Carsten Morford
Aiden Suk
WORK
Rhiannon Crawford
Ariya Pollard
Daisie Reid
Ivan Rodriguez
COMPILED BY SOPHIA YARBOROUGH (11)
Choosin’ Texas
Choosin’ Texas
Baylor University
Hazem Aldojan
Alexa Mai
Tripp Mediamolle
Reese Oppermann
Ashley Payne
East Texas A&M Commerce
Kenda Abushaikha
Houston City College
Tara Allami
Jaden Aviles
Nijah Beage
Karla Guerrero
Sharon Ramirez
Destiny Salazar
Lamar University
Melyssa Monroy
Lone Star CollegeTomball
Aedyn Beeler
Prairie View A&M University
Corbin Morris
Rice University
Ronin Chakrabarti
Benjamin Guo
Southern Methodist University
Gabby Hughes-Ross
Southwestern University
Ava McKenzie
Carsten Vasut
Tarleton State University
Lex Treadway
Texas A&M University
Grady Ash
Ella Bailey
Hunter Blalock
Maddie Box
Sophie Bryant
Elijah Chon
Madisyn Chu
Abi Clark
David Harger
Morgan Long
Eli Manuel
Vincent McGuire
Ryan McIntire
Luke Mica
Charlie Moore
Jocelyn Mucino
Leah Claire Nall
Clayton Nonhof
Natalie Patranella
Texas A&M University
Galveston
Aerin Carstensen
Texas Christian University
Abby Broussard
Elizabeth Swoboda
Maddie Verrett
Texas Southern University
Damarion Henning
Texas State University
Hampton Bonnete
Dante Burleigh
Aydan Hagler
Bethany Maynard
Abby Middlebrooks
Valeria Portales
Texas Tech University
Tessa Arango
Jackson Burleson
Mia Forero
Avery Jackson
Presley Roberts
World Ryu
Abby Warren
University of
Houston
Melina Banan
Andre Dart
Dean Inthavong
Johnathan Joseph
Noah Machado
Vince Nguyen
Alishba Siddiqui
Ana Reina Velez
Max Zhang
University of
Houston Downtown
Mohman Hatem
Alaama
Melisa Yoruk
University of St. Thomas
Gabi Mata
University of Texas
Austin
Paige Anthony
Sara Asander
Madeline Brooks
Sam Brooks
Erin Bui
Caroline Chamberlain
Kyle Chen
Jacob Cobb
Kristabella Van Gaston
Laura Gonzalez
Blake Littlejohn
Jack McAfee
Jacqueline McFaul
Maxwell McKee
Elizabeth Meadows
Sebastian Mendoza
Colton Muehr
Trace Murphree
Maddie Nguyen
Barton Smith
Maximo Spiers
Pablo Reyes
Colette Taylor
Lillian Tobin
Liam Walsh
Valerie Warren
University of Texas
Dallas
Nicholas Neumann
University of Texas
Permian Basin
Guadalupe Rodriguez
University of Texas
San Antonio
Val Lopez Mendes
Julio Rivera
Ximena Tapia
Hailey Wisdom
West Texas A&M
Shayleigh Thomas
Molly Kate Minyard
Sam Houston State University
Sara Benton
MacKenzie Hart
Sareem Islam
Barbara Wetter
Hanna Peterson
John Ryan
Everett Taylor
Graham Wetherell
Dani Weatherly
Parker York
Trinity University
Oliver Burdick
Jackson Stallings
Amanda Gonzalez
Emmie Hanvey
Maddy Hoang
Tynsley Hodge
Sakino Kitaoka
Wyatt Koy
Reese Krosby
Dash Leonard
Oracle Outlook
High school leaves students unprepared for the real world
WRITTEN BY RHEA ROY (9) AND AVA McKENZIE (12)
For many high school seniors, graduation doesn’t just bring excitement; it brings anxiety. As seniors prepare to graduate, there’s a lingering proclivity toward cluelessness heading into college and the real world.
This feeling does not stem from a lack of effort or intelligence, but rather from a gap be tween what students are taught and what they are expected to navigate after graduation.
While our school’s curricula excel at meeting standardized academic goals, in the modern world, there is a growing need to balance that rigor with more practical lifeskills training.
We can solve for x in a quadratic equation, yet recent studies show that 59% of high school graduates report feeling unprepared to manage basic financial practices like taxes, credit or insurance.
This disconnect results in students leaving high school aca demically capable, but financially and practically stunted.
High schools should aim to fill this gap in practical learning through required finance classes that tackle those complex but important financial situations students will most likely find themselves having to deal with.
They are thrust into situations where they have to make important decisions like signing student loan agreements or choosing health insurance plans without ever having been taught how to do so.
This causes unnecessary stress, costly mistakes and a steep learning curve that could have been eased with early preparation.
Additionally, schools should implement senior assemblies that address some of the things they might encounter in later life, while also allowing students to ask questions about various worries they have pertaining to this subject. Although many would argue that these skills should be taught at home, the reality of the situation is that not all students have access to the same guidance outside of their school.
Education should be an equalizer that ensures every student, regardless of their background, the right to graduate with an understanding of how to navigate the real world.
Preparing students for life after graduation doesn’t have to look like a total replacement of traditional academics, but rather an addition.
Schools are already a central place for learning; expanding that learning to include life skills is not only logical but necessary.
If high school is meant to set the foundation for future success, then it must evolve to meet the demands of the real world too.
Oracle Outlook is a recurring section featuring a student opinion that the Editorial Board believes to reflect the majority of the Oracle staff’s opinion. All opinions are our own and do not attempt to express an official school stance. The Oracle values readers’ opinions and welcomes letters to the editor, which may be submitted through our Instagram @shsoracle or in person to room 231.
ILLUSTRATION BY MELINA BANAN (12)
West Houston’s favorite bookshop. Can we say that? Opinionated service and fantastic author events since 1996.
14532 Memorial Drive · (281) 497-8675 @bluewillowbooks · bluewillowbookshop.com
Matter Principal of
Sara Guillory reflects on her first graduating
class
WRITTEN BY MELINA BANAN (12), MICHELLE MOON (12) AND JACKSON HILER (12)
Year after year, a senior class walks across the stage. The graduates receive their diplomas, throw their caps in the air, and depart from Stratford.
“Graduation is a well-oiled machine,” assistant principal Sara Guillory said. “I have been really excited just working directly with the students to get them ready to cross that finish line.”
Guillory has been helping students overcome senioritis, ensuring that everyone purchases their caps and gowns and making sure everyone’s present and enjoying a monumental occasion. She ensures everyone has all their ducks in a row as they prepare to walk across the stage in May.
“Some of these kids I’ve known since they were four or five years old, so it’s pretty wild,” Guillory said. “Some of them are exactly the same kids they’ve always been, and some of them have changed completely, and it’s just awesome to see. Fun fact: I taught Mr. Jackson’s sibling. His mom was one of our room moms when I was a teacher at Wilchester.”
Teaching isn’t the only way Guillory is connected to Stratford. She attended Stratford and graduated in the class of 1997.
“My dad calls me his boomerang child because he says he sent me way off into the world, and I came right on back like a boomerang,” Guillory said. “I joke that I don’t have to go to a high school reunion, because half of the people are right here beside me. Sometimes I feel like I haven’t grown any older. On other days, I feel like I’m about 50 years older than when I graduated from high school. But very few things are the same. It’s just kind of fun.”
Between experiencing the COVID-19 pandemic in middle school, transitioning to high school, losing the block schedule two years ago and the introduction of the phone ban at the beginning of this year, it’s safe to say that the Class of 2026 has gone through several unique situations, and
they’ve successfully persevered through them all.
“It’s really exciting for them, and I can’t wait to hear about all of the things that the seniors end up doing in the coming years,” Guillory said. “It is really tough for me, I will say. I’ve been with them for 3 years as their AP here and have grown to just love and be there for them. It is really, really tough to say goodbye. You guys have the most exciting vibe and, you know, just kind of keep me young and on my toes.”
“Ms. Guillory is a really great role model for the cheer girls. She always brings the best attitude and encourages us to do our best.”
- Meredith Cunningham (11)
Everyone is always available to learn important lessons, no matter how old they get. One lesson that Guillory has learned from the Class of 2026 is how to be heard.
“There are always things going on in the background: personal lives, things of that nature,” Guillory said. “Just earning that trust from my students [is so important]. [I want them to] feel comfortable letting me know when there is something going on, so I can support them.”
That lesson in listening can also be reflected back onto this year’s seniors.
“Be mindful and sift through all the information that’s available, try to make the most sound decisions on what’s best, what’s real, what’s true, and what’s not only going to be good for you, but good for the people around you,” Guillory said. “Being a good person is really what it’s all about.”
FLASHBACK!
Pop Culture Moments
The first iPhone released
“Umbrella”Rihanna Gossip Girl premiered
Britney Spears shaved her head
The first Hannah Montana world tour began
New York Giants won Super Bowl
Barack Obama was elected President
The first film in the Twilight Saga premiered
“Single Ladies”Beyonce Batman -The Dark releasedKnight
How Things Have Changed
The birth years of the senior class, 2007 and 2008, were full of interesting and important events worth looking back on.
The Oracle staff examined 2007-2008 editions of the Oracle and Mnemosyne yearbook to see what was important to Spartans during these years.
Teachers who started this year: Chelala and Gaiser Playhouse 2008:
“The Wizard of Oz”
“I didn’t fail the test, the test just failed to understand me.”
“Why does the teacher always start talking right when I stop paying attention?”
O V ERHEA RD
RD
COMPILED BY JAMES GARDNER (11) AND ORACLE STAFF
“I’m not cheating; I’m just collaborating without permission.”
“Bro, I studied for like 10 minutes straight. My brain is lowkenuinely sore.”
“Imagine if guys could give birth...”
“Bruh, how do you not know who Toothless is?”
