Welcome back, Westridge! We’re thrilled to be publishing our first edition of the year as we embrace new Westridge faculty and new Spyglass staff. This student-run newspaper now has an impressive 60 students, grades 7–12, involved in its production—including those working in writing, editing, design, and multimedia.
This edition focuses on what’s new at Westridge, including the largely redesigned Upper School administration, which has already made changes like tightening enforcement of uniform policy and introducing a new schedule format. Previously in development, other changes like the Tigers and Cubs program and a Block-0 PE option have also been implemented.
Our new staff writers (we have more than 10!) also wrote the traditional new faculty profiles; to read those, click here.
In these early weeks of school, Westridge is thinking about many things—homework, sports, and world news. Amid all this, Spyglass is focused on the upcoming election—how students and faculty are discussing it or, in some cases, not discussing it. Our next edition, on November 18, will be published almost two weeks after Election Day, so we’ve taken this time to write about how students and faculty are engaging in civic discussions and political participation. We have articles covering news and opinions, and we also included a Spyglass Live video.
As someone who’s personally engaged the Westridge community in election matters by registering students to vote and educating them about ongoing political issues, I believe what Westridge has to say about this election is valuable—even if most of us aren’t yet eligible to vote. We are the future, and our voices should and will be heard. It’s important to emphasize this to the Westridge community.
I also want to acknowledge that today—October 7—marks the one-year anniversary of Hamas’ deadly attack on Israel and the beginning of Israel’s retaliatory campaign in Gaza. Though we haven’t included any new pieces on this topic in this edition, we are mindful of the event and its ongoing legacy. As Jewish Affinity Head, I continue to work with my affinity group, the Middle Eastern and North African affinity, and senior administration to support students emotionally and educationally and foster respectful discourse. You can read last year’s coverage by clicking here.
Thank you for reading. We hope you enjoy this edition. If you have thoughts about our articles or questions for the authors, feel free to leave a comment. You can also write a letter to the editor; for more information, click here.
With love,
Ella
