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The Student News Site of Harvard-Westlake School

The Harvard-Westlake Chronicle

The Student News Site of Harvard-Westlake School

The Harvard-Westlake Chronicle

The Student News Site of Harvard-Westlake School

The Harvard-Westlake Chronicle

Senior Send-Offs

Senior Send-Offs

Sienna Dall’Olmo, Assistant Features Editor
May 29, 2025

It is May 29, 2016, and seniors fill the Quad beyond capacity as they prepare to count down their final moments of high school. Music blares from the speakers, and as the clock hits 3 p.m., the Class of...

Naked Truths: Intimacy and Relationships

Naked Truths: Intimacy and Relationships

Students and faculty discuss the role of intimacy and sexual intercourse in high school relationships and the effects of intimate relations on young teens.
Lyla Kavanagh, Assistant Features Editor
May 28, 2025

Eloise* sits cross-legged in a pair of oversized sweatpants as she twists a drawstring around her finger. She’s just had sex for the first time, an experience that turned out to be anticlimactic. Dozens...

Illustrated by CJ Phelan

Joining the jam

Luca Gonzalez, Assistant News Editor
May 28, 2025

Beneath the stairs, perched on a bench outside Chalmers, Nate Arnold ’25 escapes the heat of a spring day with his guitar. Letting a few warm chords drift into the afternoon air, he uses thes natural...

Catch Me if You Can: Behind the Shoplifting Trend

Catch Me if You Can: Behind the Shoplifting Trend

Members of the community discuss their experiences regarding the prevalence of shoplifting in teenagers and its repercussions.
Erin Ryu, Assistant News Editor
May 28, 2025

The scent of body mist clings to the air as pop music pulses through the store. In the makeup aisle at Sephora, Hazel’s* eyes lock on a lip gloss vial. After one glance over her shoulder, scanning for...

Academic Pivot: Responses to AP Curriculum Changes

Academic Pivot: Responses to AP Curriculum Changes

Faculty and students discuss the reasons and impact of the school’s decision to remove all Advanced Placement courses next year.
Celine Wang, Assistant Features Editor
May 28, 2025

Abby Landres ’26 sits in an empty classroom doing homework before her last class of the day. Her legs are propped up on a chair and she is focused on her laptop. She taps the keyboard as she scrolls...

Decisions, Decisions: How Seniors Decide Where to Attend College

Decisions, Decisions: How Seniors Decide Where to Attend College

Members of the school community discuss the various factors students take into account when deciding where to attend college.
Kayla Graff, Assistant Features Editor
May 28, 2025

Andrea Cruz-Vazquez’s ’25 room is quiet, lit only by the pale glow of an open laptop. She sits cross-legged at her desk, her eyes moving between the three admitted student portals open on her screen....

Seeing Red: Responses to Recent Tariffs

Seeing Red: Responses to Recent Tariffs

Students and faculty discuss how the recent tariffs have affected the United States economy, the school and the stock market.
Celine Wang, Assistant Features Editor
May 8, 2025

When Ethan Chen ’26 opened his stocks app, he instantly noticed red numbers flashing across the screen. His manufacturing and tech stocks were plummeting. Watching in disbelief, he sat in shock, seeing...

Illustrated by Annabelle Cheung

Speaking from the heart

Faculty and alumni reflect on the evolving traditions and changing significance of the valedictorian and salutatorian roles over time.
Lydia Gugsa, Assistant Features Editor
May 8, 2025

Jack Austen ’23 rose up in shock as he heard his name called at the Cum Laude Ceremony in May of 2023. He had just been selected to be the valedictorian of the Class of 2023. As he went up onto the Rugby...

Brave New World: Hearing Immigration Stories

Brave New World: Hearing Immigration Stories

Parents and members of the school community discuss their unique journeys to the U.S. and the challenge of adjusting to a different culture.
Lyla Kavanagh, Assistant Features Editor
May 8, 2025

By Lyla Kavanagh 12-year-old Sharon Legesse (Lydia ’26) sits nervously at the kitchen table, her mother sitting across from her with her hands folded in her lap. The night before, Legesse overheard...

Illustrated by Tehmina Malhotra

Purpose in Politics

Alumni working in politics discuss when they became interested in politics, the school’s involvement in their journey and the most memorable moments of their career.
Andrea Ricabal, Assistant Features Editor
May 8, 2025

Co-host of the War Room podcast Natalie Winters ’19 stood just offstage in Rugby Auditorium as the heat of the lights spilled over the crowd and the low hum of student voices buzzed like static....

Illustration by Anika Norton

Culture Shock: The Experiences of International Students

Members of the school community discuss the unique experiences of students who are originally from other countries.
Kayla Graff, Assistant Features Editor
May 8, 2025

It is middle school application season, and Ivy Wang ’26 is studying for the Independent School Entrance Exam (ISEE). Her study materials are a little different than those of her peers, though. Instead...

Traditions of Trust: Exploring the Peer Support Program

Traditions of Trust: Exploring the Peer Support Program

Students and faculty discuss the history, impact and the future of Peer Support at the school and the program’s influence on campus.
Sienna Dall’Olmo, Assistant Features Editor
May 8, 2025

It is 2022. While most classrooms at the school sit empty at 5:45 p.m. on a Monday evening, Rugby and Chalmers are quickly filled by students splitting into their Peer Support Rooms. Sophomore Nate Arnold...

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