We Are #SaugusStrong
Alexa Empleo, News Editor
December 2, 2019
On the morning of Nov. 14, a 16-year-old male student opened fire at 7:38 a.m. on Saugus High School’s campus. Three students were wounded and two were fatally shot. This includes the gunman, who later died from a self-inflicted gunshot injury. Two victims, Dominic Blackwell and Gracie Anne Muehlberger, pa...
A 16-YEAR-OLD JUNIOR STRIVES TO BECOME A PILOT
Alyssa Chang and Jasmine Wongphatarakul
November 12, 2019
West Ranch High School junior James Walusko’s days are filled with balancing school work, practicing the trumpet and training to become a pilot. “Both of my grandparents were pilots, as well as my great grandparents, which really motivated me to follow the family tradition,” said Walu...
Space Rat
Chika Winston, Website Design Editor-in-Chief
November 4, 2019
As the drummer starts with a beat, soon to be followed by the two guitarists, the four band members stand atop the stage — sweat trickling down their faces but cheeks engraved with smiles — where they overlook the small crowd in front of them. Today, they are here to perform. Tonight, they will bring som...
Homelessness: Voiceless and Unheard
Chika Winston, Iman Baber, Alexa Empleo, Quynn Lubs, Kathryn Luo, and Brooke Johnston
February 19, 2019
As you drive down the road, you pass Six Flags Magic Mountain, where you’ve been going ever since you were four years old and where you worked during the summer as a teenager. Surrounding you are the vast canyons that you’ve hiked through so many times. Straight ahead, you can see Newhall, and you’...
This is Why I Don’t Play
Daniel Lee, Harneet Arora, and Jasleen Arora
January 28, 2019
Overall, only 7 percent of high school athletes play at the collegiate level and of that seven, only 2 percent play at the NCAA Division I level. From there, only 2 percent of NCAA athletes go on to play professionally. A significant majority of these student-athletes will leave with a high school d...
Test. Tutor. Trauma.
Ryan Factora and Zoey Greenwald
December 22, 2018
SAT. ACT. GPA. These three-lettered abbreviations dominate conversations between West Ranch students; they all represent numbers -- quantifiable evidence of academic achievement. To a lot of us, they are tickets to college admissions, and we become obsessed. As a result, many have turned to t...
Our Most Valuable Students
Sophia Kriegel, Skijler Hutson
December 3, 2018
In the hallway of the administration building is a collection of photographs of every graduating class since West Ranch’s first in 2008. In the foreground of each photo is the shining emblem of the gold robes. Since the school’s opening, graduating students have been seated and dressed separately b...
Under Pressure
Allison Alben, Design Editor
November 30, 2018
COLLEGE. I’ll give you a moment to catch your breath. That was scary, wasn’t it? I know it was for me. I’m a year away from applying, and even I can already feel my heart racing at the thoughts of applications and letters of rec and every other thing that compiles into the monstrosity that i...
Who’s the Man? Mr. Manalastas Q & A
Jasleen Arora and Daniel Lee, Sports Editors
November 30, 2018
With all the changes that happened last year, we had the opportunity to talk with Mr. Manalastas about his thoughts on approaching his first full year of coaching varsity boys basketball. Q: How did you first get involved in coaching? A: A few years ago, I was asked if I would ever be interested in coaching again, an...
West Ranch’s Astronomy Club Shoots for the Stars
November 29, 2018
Outer space has been a focal point of human intrigue for thousands of years, and interest has only spiked as time has passed. What is out there? How is it out there? Who might be out there? An insatiable desire to discover the vast unknowns of space has led curious and driven people to determine metho...
Every 15 Minutes: The Painfully Preventable Truth of Impaired Driving
Sophia Kriegel, Editorials Editor
November 20, 2018
7:25 a.m. The first bells ring across campus. But this is a different kind of sound, one unlike the late bell or the conclusion of another class period. This bell rings, and following it, the face of a fellow student appears on the screen. This is repeated every 15 minutes, interrupting class wit...
It’s Not Weird to Say Hello
Jessica Son, Staff Writer
November 6, 2018
You scan the aisles at Walmart, looking over the many brands of sugary cereal. You glance over your shoulder to see where your mom went, but instead you see a person from your school. Your first instinct is to quickly turn around and avoid eye contact, but then you start to wonder why you don’t...