WG Echo April2024

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF:

Ali Schulz

PRINT/PODCAST EDITOR:

Margaret Korte

JUNIOR EDITOR/ BUSINESS MANAGER: Arianna Peper

FEATURE/VIDEO EDITOR:

Jasper Winterton

SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER/

SPORTS EDITOR:

Sam Enlund

NEWS EDITOR: David Trampe

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS:

Cameron Oleshak

Charlotte Jennings

Jude Morayta

Kate Link

Ryan DeMargel

Ryan DuBois

ADVISOR:

Donald Johnson

SOME MATERIAL FROM TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

The Echo is a monthly publication of the newspaper staff of Webster Groves High School, 100 Selma Ave., Webster Groves, MO.

To contact staff members, call 314-963-6400 ex. 11157 or write to wgecho@wgmail.org.

Unsigned editorials are the opinion of a majority of staff members; signed articles are the opinion of the writer.

Letters to the editor of 300 words or less are welcome; submit letters by the 10th of the month to wgecho@wgmail.org, or room 155. All letters must be signed, although the name may be withheld from publication if requested. The Echo has the right to edit letters for publication as long as intent remains unchanged.

The Echo is a member of SSP, Quill and Scroll, MJEA, JEA, MIPA, NSPA and CSPA.

theecho

Staff shares how to prepare for AP Exams

Students witness partial solar eclipse

Statesmen Sports Awards to honor student athletes

Men’s volleyball team aims to win State

Instagram settings censor political content

Webster sports show up in place of Special Olympics

Teachers present Top Hat Awards to students

Students say schools should respond to sexual assault, harassment better

Moss Field reconstruction affects athletes

Spanish teacher moves to Chelsea Center

Students discuss summer break jobs

Students travel to France, England

Day of Silence protests LGBTQIA+ discrimination

2023 to 2024 year in pictures

Summer Bucket List

Staff shares how to prepare for AP exams

Arianna Peper Junior Editor/Business Manager

Advanced Placement (AP) Exams will take place at the high school May 6-10 and May 13-17.

According to College Board, AP Exams are designed to measure how well students have mastered the content and skills of a specific AP course, and each exam is weighed on a scale out of five. Each test typically lasts three to four hours, and the structure of each test varies depending on the subject. However, the majority of tests include multiple-choice and free-response questions.

With that, it is often recommended that students take more time to study the material to have a better chance of earning a higher score.

AP United States History teacher Michael Weber said, “They should start [studying] now. I’ve told my classes to give themselves about a week for every unit we have in the course. So focus, study, and prep for the test for seven-to-eight weeks.”

Due to these exams being nationally administered tests, many different resources, both online and in the classroom, that are available for students to use.

AP Statistics teacher Justin Mathes said via email, “The best way to practice for the exam is by taking the old exams released by College Board. It is important to simulate testing conditions when practicing. Setting a timer to simulate time constraints, putting electronics away and trying to do the exam straight through with no breaks all better prepare you.”

Mathes added via email, “A three-hour exam can sometimes be an endurance test so replicating that can help you avoid feeling overwhelmed on test day.”

Online resources such as College Board or AP Classroom offer various ways students can study using things such as practice tests and video lessons.

In addition, Weber said, “If you can use Google, you can find an AP U.S. History study guide, and there are so many different ones out there that they fit everyone’s style. If you like videos and learn from videos– there’s a million of them. If you like brief outlines to kind of jog your memory— there’s a million of them.”

AP Chemistry teacher Jessica Michael-Lane said a student can start to prepare for the exam by “forcing yourself to do it and not just looking at it and saying, ‘I know how to do it.’ Actually testing yourself to see if you know the information is really helpful.”

Along with studying for the exam, Weber and Michael-Lane agreed students should focus on maintaining healthy habits such as getting enough sleep and nutrition.

“Focus on your nutrition; focus on your sleep. It might not seem like that matters but it does,” Weber said.

According to the National Institutes of Health, getting enough sleep has been found to be correlated to higher test scores.

By taking an AP Exam, if a student scores well enough,

they have the ability to earn college credit (depending on the course and the minimum score their college requires). These exams also help students prepare for the college workload through the amount of studying beforehand.

Mathes also agreed that taking the exam could have many benefits for students.

“Ninety-five percent of our students have scored a 3 or higher (passing) since we started the AP Stats course. Over the past three years our students have averaged a 4.3 on the exam, compared to the national average of 2.89. It’s a great opportunity to showcase nine months of hard work and earn college credit at the same time,” Mathes said via email.

“Advice that I would give is to take it seriously. It’s not a regular test so the way that you prepare for your unit tests might not be enough for this one– for an AP Exam– because of the length,” Weber said.

Weber added, “It takes endurance to do well on this test, you’ve got to be locked in for over three hours so my advice is to take the process very seriously and do not cram; start [studying] now and do it a little bit at a time.”

Students witness partial solar eclipse

David Trampe Contributing Writer

Students were treated to a rare viewing of a solar eclipse on April 8.

A solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes directly between the sun and the Earth casting a shadow that partially or fully blocks out the sun’s rays.

The administration made the decision for students to be released to either Selma or Kopplin Field during sixth hour to view the spectacle.

Each student was provided with a pair of Eclipse Glasses for viewing.

Sophomore Will Travers said, “The memory of an eclipse is a fleeting moment of cosmic wonder, an event that will forever be etched in the minds of those who witnessed it.”

Students viewed the solar eclipse on Monday, April 8.

Solar eclipses happen around twice a year but often in remote parts of the world like the North and South Poles. There are also annual partial eclipses that happen throughout the U.S.

Sophomore Bennett Heard said, “I was grateful to have the opportunity to witness such a rare event with my classmates. It truly is a once in a lifetime event, a event of pure wonder.”

The last two total eclipses in North America occurred in 2017 and 1994.

The occasion provided a break from the school day, and some sudents made the drive to places in Missouri and Illinois that were in the path of totality.

The next solar eclipse in North America is projected to be on Aug. 12, 2045.

Statesmen Sports Awards to honor student athletes

Cameron Oleshak Contributing Writer

Players from fall, winter and spring sports will gather for the Statesmen Sports Awards on May 9, at 7 p.m. in Roberts Gym.

This awards ceremony celebrates all of the sports and players throughout the year.

Webster has been doing the awards ceremonies for eight years now.

The awards that will be presented are High Team GPAs, Three Sport Athletes, Coach of the Year, Statesmen Spirit Award, Team Manager of the Year, Freshman Athlete of the Year, Comeback/ Newcomer of the Year, Individual Performance of the Year, Team Performance of the Year, Memorable Moment of the Year, Male and Female Athletes of the Year and the most notable, the Statesmen Elite Award.

The Statesmen Elite Award is one of the most noteworthy awards because it goes to one Varsity athlete per sport based on

leadership and enthusiasm.

Athletic director Jerry Collins said, “What it means to some of the students is that they have been contributing to their teams.”

Photo by David Trampe

Men’s volleyball team aims to win State

Ryan DeMargel Contributing Writer

Men’s volleyball aims to take home the State Championship this 2024 season. The men’s team commented on the tough loss in the State Championship last year and shared goals for this season.

The 2023 State championship was won by DeSmet. Webster Groves placed second in the Championship Tournament. By a score of 3 sets to 0, the Statesmen were defeated in a tough loss. Although the loss was hard on the team, the team is not letting the loss get in the way of the 2024 State championship.

“It was frustrating, but the other team was clearly the better team. We are coming back a lot better this year,” senior Aiden WhiteMountain said.

“Our goal for this season is to get back to where we were last year, into the State final. Hopefully this time we can take the win,” senior Jack Hendrix said.

The Statesmen have worked throughout the summer and had a long preseason, in hopes of claiming the State title.

“We have done a lot of preseason work-

team huddles together after scoring a point on Wednesday, April 3, against Parkway Central. The Statesmen defeated Central 3-0.

outs, and just working outside of the gym.

A bunch of team bonding,” senior Kyzer Strawbridge said.

Men’s volleyball has defeated Kirkwood,

Parkway West, Parkway Central, Lindbergh, Mehlville, Oakville, Whitfield, Parkway South, Saxony Lutheran, Northwest, Notre Dame Regional High School and others.

March 22-23, Webster held its annual tournament. The Statesmen finished in second place, losing to Mehlville, who is in the division above Webster. Then, on April 9, Webster defeated Mehlville 3 sets to 0.

“Serve receive is our biggest issue. We work on serve receive everyday, and we have our setters set our teammates every day,” Strawbridge said.

“We are going to stay focused and just stick together and hold each other accountable,” WhiteMountain said.

“Taking care of the first touch, serving, and serve receive is our biggest issue. We work hard in the gym and try out new drills. We really work hard in the scrimmages,” Hendrix said.

Senior players WhiteMountain and Ezra Maupin plan to continue their athletic journeys by playing Division I volleyball at Maryville.

Other seniors on the team such as Strawbridge and Hendrix will not play volleyball for their colleges but plan to join a recreational league.

The men’s volleyball

Photo by Ryan DeMargel

Senior Ezra Maupin swings at the ball against Parkway Central on Wednesday, April 3. The Statesmen defeated Parkway Central 3-0.

Photo by Ryan DeMargel

Instagram settings censor political content

Ali Schulz Editor-in-Chief

Instagram, owned by Meta, added a new update in March that automatically restricts the amount of political content users see on their feed, unless manually changed by the user in settings.

According to NBC News, the new update has stopped users from getting recommended political accounts that they do not follow.

In addition, NBC News stated, “This setting excludes content that is ‘likely to mention governments, elections, or social topics that affect a group of people and/or society at large from the platforms discovery mechanisms.’”

The discovery mechanisms on Instagram are where users are suggested content from accounts they don’t follow that Instagram believes they would be interested in. With this new update, political content will no longer be included.

Critics voiced their opinions on the new update.

According to TIME Magazine, one of these critics was Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee who stated, “‘Instagram is now trying to suppress political content just months before the next presidential election. Why is Meta attempting to censor the democratic process?’”

Another critic was Katie Grossbard, a news influencer and attorney, who believes the definition of political content is unclear.

According to NBC News, Grossband

said, “‘This decision directly harms communities whose entire existence is political, and is there a difference between posting content about nonpartisan election dates, verses posting about a court case that impacts reproductive freedom verses posting a slideshow about trans history?’”

Meta has tried to reduce political content since 2021, so this did not come as a surprise, but users are frustrated that Meta did not inform people about this change and when it would occur.

This led to frustration from users, as they were not informed of this restriction, and therefore did not know that the restriction was in place for them. There are accounts across social media that have been working to inform users of the change, and teach them how to get rid of it.

To view this restriction, one must first open Instagram and go to their page. Afterwards, the user must click the three lines in the top righthand corner and click settings and privacy.

Then, scroll down to content preferences. Click on it, and then click on political content. From there, the user can select whether they would like to continue to limit the amount of content they see, or if they would like to continue to keep the restriction in place.

Photo from Instagram app

Webster sports show up in place of Special Olympics

Charlotte Jennings

Contributing Writer

While the Special Olympics will not occur at Webster this year, students are still participating in different sport events that Best Buddies will have a hand in running.

“Webster won’t be hosting the Special Olympics this year due to the track,” SSD teacher Angela Backer said. “But that doesn’t mean the Special Olympics aren’t happening elsewhere.”

The Special Olympics is a worldwide movement that strives for the inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities in sports. When it occurs in Webster, students with intellectual disabilities gather at the Moss Field to participate in activities that help to build a strong community against ableism in sports.

“Participating in Special Olympics is an inclusive way to allow those that are not

The Special Olympics occurs yearly and aims to include people with intellectual disabilities in sports.

Special Olympics Logo from specialolympics.org.

able to participate on other teams a chance to get that extra curricular experience, “ Backer said via email.

There are multiple opportunities for disabled children through the Special Olympics, including Young Athletes, an early childhood play program that encourages children with intellectual disabilities to participate in sports, learn how to interact with other children, and other important developmental skills.

“I think it is incredibly important to in-

clude those with disabilities in sports,” Backer said via email. “It provides opportunities to socialize with others, build connections, and feel what it is like to be part of a team.”

Instead of the Special Olympics, two other sport events, a softball tournament at Lindbergh and a Track and Field tournament at Kirkwood, will take its place. Both will include members of Best Buddies that will assist in the games.

Teachers present Top Hat Awards to students

Cameron Oleshak Contributing Writer

Students and staff gathered for the Top Hat Awards at 7:45 a.m. on Friday, April 12, in Roberts Gym.

The Top Hat Awards are a yearly ceremony in which each staff member selects one student with high attendance, good citizenship and school spirit throughout the year.

If one was nominated by a teacher or other staff member, they received a nomination slip. This year there were over 100 students nominated for the award.

Nominees were given a medal and a muf-

Seniors Tania Perez Landeiro and Kyzer Strawbridge and freshman Daniel Flores were awarded Top Hat Awards by teachers Friday, April 12, in Roberts Gym. Staff members nominated students who were outstanding throughout the school year.

Photos by Cameron Oleshak

fin on their way out.

“I thought it was pretty cool to win an award, and my parents were pretty excited about it too,” freshman Daniel Flores said.

“It’s an honor to these students who were nominated for an award because they all worked hard to earn this,” Activities Office admin assistant Kim Edwards said.

Students say schools should respond to

Jasper Winterton Feature /Video Editor

“It feels like the school cares more about their public image than the safety of their students,” an anonymous sophomore said.

The students preferred to remain anonymous due to the severity of the topic. According to the Center for Public Integrity journalism, “Using anonymous sources can help to protect the source themselves.” With the sources and alleged perpetrators being minors, the anonymous sources chose to stay anonymous in regards to safety concerns.

Students have said that the Hixson and high school administrations have allegedly not handled sexual assault and harassment accusations appropriately or have allegedly minimized and invalidated the alleged victims’ experiences.

An anonymous freshman said that when she was in eighth grade at Hixson, she was sexually assaulted during school by a classmate, and when the victim’s family reported the alleged assault, the administration allegedly said she was likely misunderstanding the situation.

“I am lucky enough to have not experienced any of those things at the high school; however, I have experienced it multiple times in middle school. In PE at Hixson, a boy walked up to me with white stuff all over his hand and asked for a high five. When I declined, he wiped it all over my chest while I was wearing a tank top,” the freshman said.

She added that after declining to the high five, she tried running away from him, but he caught her and wiped his hand and the substance across her chest. Her teacher allegedly told her to clean up and then go to the office. The first person she talked to was Officer Cameron McCullough, school resource officer, and she said he helped her feel better and had her write out a statement along with the other alleged victim.

McCullough did not respond to requests for comment.

“[The alleged perpetrator] told me that he had jacked off in the bathroom beforehand and that that was what he wiped on me. He did it to another girl, and when we contacted the school administration, the administrators said it probably wasn’t what we

thought it was,” the freshman added. She said that she hasn’t worn a tank top to school since the occurrence.

“[An administrator] told my mom that it was going to permanently be in my records that [the perpetrator] couldn’t be in a class with me, but he still wasn’t taken out [of my class],” the freshman said.

The administrator no longer works for the district and could not be reached for comment.

The freshman felt “his whole thing was about protecting the kid who hurt me. He said he couldn’t tell [my mom] what would happen to the kid,” in reference to another administrator her family talked to.

The freshman’s mom confirmed this, and the other administrator did not comment on it.

“A teacher told me that the student was suspended for one day, and even though I was told he would permanently be removed from my class, he wasn’t,” the freshman said.

“I feel very lucky to go to school in this district. I just wish things were taken more seriously,” the freshman said.

Three of the students interviewed agreed that sexual harassment and assault is much more prominent at Hixson than the high school, but there have also been situations at the high school that were allegedly overlooked.

“I feel very lucky to district. I just wish more seriously,” -

According to Equal Rights Advocates, if someone reports a sexual assault or harassment, the school legally can not ignore or blame them, and the school has to respond in a quick and appropriate manner.

The freshman said that she felt repeatedly invalidated by the Hixson administration.

According to the American Association of University Women, harassment and assault in schools contributes to an unsafe and hostile environment at the school or institution, and a majority of schools fail to properly report sexual harassment, assault or violence when it occurs.

“I think a lot of administrators have been telling students that it’s okay to come forward, but when what the student experiences inconveniences the school in any way, they will try to silence the student or try and convince the student that it’s not as big as they’re making it out to be or imply that they’re being overdramatic,” a sophomore said.

Another anonymous sophomore also came forward about the way the middle school and high school handles sexual assault and harassment.

“I feel like they do the bare minimum because they don’t want to get involved in such a sensitive topic,” the sophomore said.

“At Hixson, [my counselor] tried to get me to be friends with him again after it all. They were like, ‘Well, you’re a really important thing in his life, and he needs you,’” the sophomore added,

Image made by Jasper Winterton on Canva

to sexual assault, harassment better

in reference to a situation he brought to the administration after allegedly being sexually assaulted and harassed by another student.

The counselor did not respond to requests for comment.

“And even [at the high school], they refused to let me switch out of the only class I had with him, even though I said I can’t handle seeing him everyday, and I was leaving class just to avoid seeing him. They just said, ‘Well, maybe just try to keep a distance from him in class,’” the sophomore said.

Matt Irvin, high school principal, said he was unaware of the situation the sophomore reported and that there are important factors that go into handling situations like it.

“Depending on the pervasiveness or severity, we have different processes,” Irvin said. The processes can include involving law enforcement and discussing disciplinary actions with the school board.

In regards to involving law enforcement, Irvin said that if the administration thinks a crime has been committed, they will communicate with the authorities.

to go to school in this things were taken

anonymous freshman

Ken Winningham, counselor, said, “It goes two different ways. So let’s say student A says student B assaulted them. We can move student A’s schedule around to avoid student B. If there are legal proceedings and charges are brought, then we can move student B, but we can’t really move student B unless there is an actual restraining order or legal proceedings.”

“Any sexual violence against a minor has to be hotlined,” Anne Gibbs, social worker, said.

According to Gibbs, no matter who or how old the alleged perpetrator is, any case of sexual violence against a minor must be reported by a mandated reporter to the Children’s Division hotline. Depending on the report, the Children’s Division will do its own investigation and include authorities if it feels necessary.

Neither the freshman nor the sophomore believe their cases were reported to the hotline.

In response to an FOIA request, the school district said it does not keep a record of the number of hotline reports that are made by district employees.

According to Gibbs, some resources for survivors of sexual assault include Safe Connections, Children’s Advocacy Center, Children’s Division Hotline and the YWCA.

Winningham said the high school has a specific protocol for sexual harassment and sexual assault cases.

“We, by law, are required to complete a hotline [report] ... because that would entail child abuse. Whether it’s the same aged child or not who did it, sexual assault is always going to be child abuse,” Winningham said.

Winningham added that the high school has specific steps it has

to take regardless of the details of the situation.

“We notify our school resource officer and our head principal, and then we usually call the parent,” Winningham said.

“I don’t know what [Hixson’s] protocol is … but the law about calling children’s services, and I assume law enforcement- those are there still- like I would lose my license if I don’t do that,”

Winningham said.

Dr. John Simpson, superintendent, said via email, “We each want to stress that we take any allegations of sexual assault or harassment quite seriously, and always prioritize the needs of the students, families and staff involved - especially those who are victims.”

Simpson said the school district policies which include AC, ACA and JHG guide the district’s responses for all levels- preK12th grade.

According to policy AC, “Any person suspected of abusing or neglecting a child will be reported immediately to the CD [Children’s Division].” According to Eskew Law, minors can be charged with sexual abuse, meaning that a child-on-child sexual assault case is considered child abuse and should be immediately reported to the Children’s Division hotline.

The Office of Justice Programs said that minors account for an estimated 25.8% of known sex offenders.

Policy JHG states that “Mandated reporters acting in their official capacities who know or have reasonable cause to suspect that a child has been subjected to abuse or neglect or is being subjected to conditions or circumstances that would reasonably result in abuse or neglect must directly and immediately make a report to the CD.”

School district policy ACA says that the district will maintain records of each sexual harassment investigation under Title IX for seven years. However, when sent an FOIA request for the number of investigations that occurred during two school years within that time frame, a representative for the district said via email: “I do not have a record of the number of student-on-student sexual harassment investigations under Title IX at Hixson and WGHS for the school years 2021-22 and 2022-23.”

Moss Field reconstruction affects athletes

Sam Enlund Social Media/Sports Editor

Construction on Moss Field started on Aug. 21, 2023, as an almost yearlong project began. With the construction, all the sports teams that utilized the field and track had to relocate to neighboring schools.

Athletic director Jerry Collins said that the construction of the new field has a tentative end date of Aug. 1.

About how he chose when to start renovations, Collins said, “It was not going to be a short time. It was not like we were going to pick between losing football season or track season… it was a matter of which year it was going to be.”

Due to construction, the Webster Groves track team had to relocate to Affton. Now, after complications with Affton and scheduling, it moved to the walking field at Kirkwood’s Nipher Middle school.

“It has definitely presented as a logistical nightmare, but we are working through it together as a team and I think it has made us stronger and better as a team,” men’s track and field coach Jon Petter said The track team has had to organize car-

pooling, with forms for parents to sign at the beginning of the year so that they could find rides for all of the runners.

“I drive freshman sprinters who I probably would have never talked to… which is kind of fun,” senior Tessa Garrison said.

The women’s lacrosse team also uses Moss Field for its games. The team has been able to continue its regular practices at the practice field at Dr. Henry Givens Jr. Elementary School.

The team has to use the Kirkwood field for its home games.

Regarding the construction, Varsity lacrosse Coach Jeremy Winingham said, “It makes it really hard for us to find fields and find space. All the coaches are trying to figure out how to adjust.”

Seniors on both lacrosse and track are without a home field for their final season and will not see the benefits that the underclassmen will.

“It was very exciting that progress was going to be made. It was just upsetting that progress wasn’t going to be made while I was still here,” senior lacrosse player Carina Dickie said.

Moss Field is currently under construction with an ending date of Aug. 1.

Photo shared by Athletic Department with community members

Spanish teacher moves to work at Chelsea Center

Margaret Korte Print/Podcast Editor

Spanish teacher Patrick Bommarito is moving to work in the Chelsea Center beginning in the 2024-25 school year.

Bommarito, who has taught Spanish at WGHS for 14 years, said the choice to shift to the Chelsea Center was a “quick process” because it was an internal position. He will be taking the role of Community Connector, a job currently occupied by Jennifer Willenborg.

Coordinator at the Chelsea Center, Kerry Arens, said Bommarito will “teach experiential learning classes,” as well as assisting students with service learning, internships, and passion pursuits.

Bommarito said his new position will include “working with students and the community: businesses, job shadowing, asking what will be available.”

Current community connector, Jennifer Willenborg, is moving to work at the University City school district starting next school year.

Willenborg said the position “requires someone who doesn’t mind making a phone call, building bridges [and] networking.” She said community connector needs to be “happy to chat with anyone” and use connections as an opportunity to network.

She said being a community connector needs someone with the

ability to “meet students where they are” and to “design meaningful learning.”

Bommarito said that he’s “gotten to know Dr. Arens and the Chelsea Center in the past few years.” “Once I started working with them as a teacher, I just really enjoyed it.” He’d tried experiential learning with his classes in the past, but there had been a “lull” after the pandemic.

“[The Chelsea Center] was like, ‘We’re on it,’” Bommarito said. Last school year, his class took a tour of Cherokee Street and worked in an international welcome center, working with recent immigrants and “getting them acclamated.”

After working with the Chelsea Center, Bommarito said he started writing down ideas. “I like Spanish teaching,” he said, “but I think there could be more.” He hopes to help teachers incorporate more experiential learning into their classes through the Chelsea Center. He said as a teacher himself, he hopes to use relationships he’s already built with other staff members to his advantage.

Arens said she’s “excited to have him as part of the team.” “[I’ve] worked with him before and seen how much he likes working with kids, which is really goal number one.”

“I really like what they do, really like experiential learning,” Bommarito said. He looks forward to working with students and promoting “more deep learning.” “[You] just gotta get out there and do it.”

Students discuss summer break jobs

Jude Morayta

Contributing Writer

As summer approaches, high school students try to find jobs.

The counselors and the Chelsea Center can help find the best job opportunities based on what career one is interested in.

Dr. Kerry Arens, the Chelsea Center coordinator, said, “Students’ jobs depend on their goals... Students have to balance getting money and trying to explore career paths.”

Freshman Tyler Garrison said he plans to work at Vetta’s Summer Camp at the Vetta Soccer Dome in Webster Groves as a counselor, with children aged six through 12 with sports-related activities. He said he also is con-

sidering being a Kickaroo counselor if possible. The Kickaroo is a camp for children ages 18 months through six years old, also at Vetta.

Freshman Ruben Cruchaga will work at his father’s laboratory, Cruchaga Lab, at Washington University of Saint Louis as an intern over the summer for $16 an hour. The Cruchaga Lab’s mission is to understand more about diseases such as Alzheimer’s as well as other types of dementias.

Cruchaga added he will volunteer with the Zoo ALIVE summer camp at the Saint Louis Zoo.

“I like working with kids, and I’m excited to be in the zoo again this summer,” Cruchaga said.

Junior John Carlos Meyer, said that during the summer, he will work at the Webster Groves Recreation Center.

About what he liked working at the Rec Center, Meyer said the hours are quite flexible, and “There’s open communication with my managers on what I can and can’t do.”

For this story, a Google poll was made to find more summer jobs that students like.

Responses included being a lifeguard, working at restaurants such as Olive & Oak and Dewey’s, and working at the Webster Groves Public Library.

According to the poll, some of the best-paying jobs include being a golf caddie, a babysitter, or working in restaurants.

Students take trip to France, England

Kate Link Contributing Writer

History teacher, Betty Roberts, hosted a trip to Europe over spring break that entailed visiting numerous regions and townships in Europe.

Roberts has been planning the spring break trip since 2021. All grade levels were allowed to participate in the trip, as long as they could make the payment of $4,000 per person.

Roberts went to a travel company and hand-picking a travel itinerary that included key components of the schools curriculum. In addition, preperation included curriculum from other departments, a parent/student meeting, and work with the Chelsea Center to allow students engaged in the trip to earn experiential learning credit.

The trip consisted of two days in England, six days in France, and one day

in-between England and France. Students went to places such as London, Paris, Boise, Caen, and Normandy, and got to see historic landmarks such as the Big Ben and the Eiffel Tower.

Junior Lizzy Hancock, a participant on the trip, said, “Yeah, I thought it was super fun. It was really exciting to see new things and get to experience stuff I never really thought I would before.”

Junior Audrey Casey said, “I thought it was like, so cool seeing and like experiencing different cultures, and like, going to all of the historical sites in France and London. And I’ve just learned so much about the history, and everything was so beautiful and cool.”

Roberts said there are plans to do this again in the future. “I always wanted to rotate every two years between Europe and Asia.” Roberts added she plans to offer the Japanese trip in the summer of 2025 and an Italy and Greece trip in 2026.

Students visited the Eiffel Tower during the spring break trip to Europe.

Photo provided by Lizzy Hancock

Day of Silence protests LGBTQIA+ discrimination

Charlotte Jennings Contributing Writer

Day of Silence is a day of protest to emphasize and recognize LGBTQIA+ lives lost by violence and suicide. This year, it happened on April 12.

“It’s meant to point out what life would be like if people weren’t there anymore,” Susan Riegel, Gender and Sexuality Alliance (GSA) sponsor, said when asked about the importance of Day of Silence.

Day of Silence was started by two college students who wanted to protest the homophobia and transphobia in America.

“It first started as something for gay men and lesbians, but it eventually grew,” Riegel said.

So far in 2024, there are 487 anti-LGBTQ bills in the United Staes, 35 being in Missouri. Multiple of these bills would affect the school life of LGBTQ students, including forced outings.

Freshmen Kori Stuber and Ginny Hultz break their silence at Froyo on Friday, April 12. Breaking silence comes at the end of Day of Silence, a day of protest in support of LGBTQIA+ individuals. “It was very freeing in the sense that I was able to share my thoughts,” Stuber said.

Photo by Charlotte Jennings

“Homophobia can come in many forms. Sometimes I get weird looks on the streets or I’ll overhear hateful conversations between students, which makes me feel uncomfortable and unsafe” said freshman Kori Stuber.

Now, by including the full LGBTQ+ community, it brings awareness to the hate crimes and suicide rates among all members of the community.

According to the Trevor Project, LGBTQ+ youth are more than four times as likely to attempt suicide than their straight peers.

“[Day of Silence] is important because it brings awareness to a community that doesn’t always have a voice,” junior and GSA co-leader Ellis Gibson said.

When participating in Day of Silence, people don’t communicate in person or through social media.

“I’ve been participating in Day of Silence for three years, and it really changed my perspective because it showed me how difficult it is to live a normal day without communicating,” Gibson said.

“While I think the importance of Day of Silence has decreased some due to the new generation being more accepting, there are still hate crimes, especially with trans folks being killed,” Riegel said.

“It’s important to participate because you put yourself into the shoes of people who can’t be out or who can’t live their life,” Gibson said.

At the end of Day of Silence, students break their silence, which allows them to speak to others about their experiences.

“It was weird because I had been silent all day, but it also felt nice because I knew I was being quiet for an important reason,” freshman Sam Kruse said.

2023 to 2024 in pictures

Seniors Kaya Wolf and Mia Willis rehearse for the show “Rumors,” by Neil Simon on Tuesday, Nov. 14, in Jerry R. Knight Auditorium. Opening night was Thursday, Nov. 16 and upcoming performances include tonight, Nov. 17 and Saturday, Nov. 18 at 7 p.m.

Photo by Arianna Peper

Freshman Clark Montgomery, senior Calum Shank, junior Emmett Shank, and senior Dylan Hulsizer stand on the podium after placing third in the 200 freestyle relay at the State Championship Finals on Friday, Nov. 10. The relay team also broke the school record for the event with a time of 1:29.57.

Photo by Arianna Peper

Senior Ellie Heiman reaches for the ball during the women’s Varsity basketball game against Pattonville High School during Douglass Night on Saturday, Feb. 17, in Robert’s Gym. Webster lost 33-46.

Sophomore Micah McCoy cheers on her teammates from the dugout during a JV women’s softball game against Rockwood Summit at Afton Athletic Association on Oct. 2. Webster won 15-8.

Seniors Mia Willis and Kyzer Strawbridge were crowned Webster Royals at the Friendship Dance on Saturday, Nov. 4 at the high school.

Webster Groves celebrated the 125th annual Turkey Day with Kirkwood on Thursday, Nov. 23, at Lyons Memorial Field. The Statesmen lost to the Kirkwood Pioneers with a score of 13-65.

Junior Sonia Archambault and senior Alissa Crespi stand together during the women’s swim and dive senior night meet against Rockwood Summit on Tuesday, Jan. 23 at Webster University.

Photo by Arianna Peper

Students attended Prom at The Hawthorn on Saturday, April 13.

Photo by Ali Schulz

Photo by Soledad Lee

Photo by Arianna Peper

Photo by Karson Bluette

Photo by Arianna Peper

2023 October cover of the Echo.