Prom/Promposals – 2020
By Miranda Chung, Copy Editor
May 14, 2020
Who knew for my last article, I would be committing a cardinal sin of the J and breaking the AP style number one rule: writing in the first person. As a second semester senior, I’m more than ready to leap out of high school and into college. But I did not expect to be writing my last Observer ...
Yes to early decision
By Miranda Chung, Copy Editor
March 4, 2020
The deadline to apply early decision to college has passed and students have received their admission letters. Early decision is a college admissions process in which high school students send their application to their preferred college early in the admissions cycle and receive a decision from the ...
Administration works to fight against vaping epidemic
By Miranda Chung and Ohio Meshanko
October 18, 2019
To date, more than ten teenagers have been confirmed dead as a direct result of e-cigarettes, or vapes. Last spring, some anonymous WCHS students were found intoxicated in a bathroom due to vaping. One student even had to be picked up by ambulance after another vaping related incident. E-cigs w...
Foreign language class should be mandatory for all years
By Miranda Chung, Copy Editor
May 14, 2019
Currently at WCHS, the minimum requirement of foreign language credits that are needed to graduate is three. There are some universities in the country that make foreign language classes mandatory as well. Though these credits were put in place to encourage students to learn another language, many ar...
Colleges need to change policies to equal playing field
By Miranda Chung, Assistant Opinions Editor
April 5, 2019
The college admission scandal that broke out March 12 has put a massive spotlight on the inequity of the college admission process, and the absurd lengths parents would go to get for their child to receive admission into an elite university. In total, 50 people were charged in the scam, including admissio...
Facebook struggles with privacy issues
By Miranda Chung, Assistant Opinions Editor
April 5, 2019
For the past year, Facebook has been struggling with the government in regard to their data collection activities, and many people are aware of the scandals associated with the company. However, that’s not stopping users from agreeing to give up their digital privacy for some cash. It has been ...
Bao film impresses WCHS students
By Miranda Chung, Assistant Opinions Editor
April 3, 2019
Pixar has recently become an avid supporter of cultural inclusion through its films like “Sanjay’s Super Team” portraying Indian culture, and “Coco” portraying Latino culture. To add another one to the list, “Bao” is an eight minute short film taking a bite into Chinese culture in a way t...
National parks vandalized because of govt. shutdown
By Miranda Chung, Assistant Opinions Editor
January 23, 2019
As of Jan. 9, the 2018-2019 U.S. government shutdown is now the longest in history, breaking the 1996 record. An estimate of 380,000 government employees have been granted leaves of absence and another 420,000 are expected to work without pay for the duration of the shutdown, halting progress in federal dep...
MCPS school buses need to install seat belts
By Miranda Chung, Assistant Opinions Editor
December 21, 2018
The Oct. 8 limo crash in New York is considered to be the deadliest U.S. car accident in nine years according to the New York Times. After killing 20 people, including the driver of the vehicle and two pedestrians, the horrifying incident directed much needed attention on transportation safety. ...
Athletes must live up to role model standards
By Miranda Chung, Assistant Opinions Editor
November 20, 2018
The women’s finals match of the 2018 U.S. Open between Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka has sparked controversy not only in the tennis community, but throughout the sports industry. In a major upset, legendary tennis champion Williams lost the U.S. Open to Japanese player, Osaka. It is not Williams’...
Shell Shockers video game cracks into classrooms
By Miranda Chung, Assistant Opinions Editor
June 13, 2018
As soon as one signs up to play, there is banner on the screen that says, “Welcome to Shell Shockers, the world’s most advanced egg-based multiplayer shooter! It’s your favorite battlefield game...but with eggs!” While most see this as another harmless and common kids video game, there ma...
“Before My Eyes” is a must-read for CHS students
By Miranda Chung, Assistant Opinions Editor
May 15, 2018
In Before My Eyes, author Caroline Bock perfectly captures the societal problems of today, by weaving her story very closely to reality. It is a new thought-provoking young adult novel featuring the lives of three teenagers whose lives were forever changed after being held at gunpoint. ...