The School Newspaper of Winston Churchill High School.

The Observer

The School Newspaper of Winston Churchill High School.

The Observer

The School Newspaper of Winston Churchill High School.

The Observer

WCHS senior Kira Bernstein checks into the main office per the new attendance rules. Now, attendance is handled in the main office instead of the previous attendance office.

Don’t skip this one: WCHS updates the attendance policies

By Sneha David, Online Content Editor October 18, 2023

At any MCPS classroom at this moment, there would be empty seats. However, these seats have increased in the past two years, causing alarm among the MCPS community. As schools across the county have...

Typing on her computer, WCHS senior Jaehee Lee drafts ideas for a diversity prompted supplemental essay on Oct. 1 2023.

Admission anxiety heightens per affirmative action ban

By Kalena Yee, Features Editor October 18, 2023

The college admissions process has drastically changed over the past decade, including a sharply increased number of applicants, lowered acceptance rates, lasting effects of COVID-19 and the most recent...

Copy-Plus, MCPS program to centralize document copying and distribution, has been plagued with delays during the start of the 2023-24 school year. This has resulted in severly disrupted classes and schedules at WCHS and across the county.

The new pandemic plaguing WCHS: tech issues

By Isar Uslu, Assistant News Editor October 18, 2023

Broken copiers. Slow Wi-Fi. Old laptops. These are just some of the issues WCHS students and staff face daily. In an ever-digitizing school system, dependence on functioning technology becomes increasingly...

Registation for the MCPS Central High School Program (CHSSP) is now available. Students may now register to complete one full-credit course over the summer.

Soak up the sun and knowledge at MCPS summer school

By Catherine Chan, Assistant Online Editor June 6, 2023

Sunshine. Travel. Beach. Friends. Ice cream. These are often the words that come to mind when students think about summer. However, for other students, summer reminds them more of pencils, paper and Zoom...

From left: WCHS juniors Alexander Wei, Soham Jinsi, Eric Zhou, Justin Zacharia and Garion Cheng eat at California Tortilla after their AP Chinese exam abruptly crashes on May 3.

Lost in translation: AP Chinese exam crashes for students

By Jeremy Chung, Editor-in-Chief June 6, 2023

Imagine paying 100 dollars and studying for months for a test that can give you college credit, only for the test to be canceled due to poor management. This is exactly what happened to all WCHS students...

Restorative justice is known for its restorative circles where the two parties in a conflict come together to discuss what happened and how to move forward.

Restorative justice mediates conflict, one talk at a time

By Leah Kreisler, Sports Editor June 6, 2023

Detention. Grade reduction. Suspension. These are decades-old punishments commonly used in schools to keep students in check, but they have gradually faded. Instead, many school systems, including MCPS,...

Students arriving at school on May 19. Getting students to and from school safely is a major concern with the new findings of the bus violations.

Ticket troubles: Bus drivers rack up violations

By Caroline Harless, News Editor June 6, 2023

MCPS school buses transport over 103,000 students daily between home and school. Regardless of whether the ride is 10 minutes or 40, buses play a crucial role in ensuring students reach their destinations....

WCHS students may soon be able to vote in the local government elections. Five cities have already lowered their voting age.

Empowering the future: should the US lower the voting age?

By Olga Engler, Photo Manager May 31, 2023

Takoma Park, Greenbelt, Hyattsville, Riverdale Park and Mount Rainier. All of these cities are places where the voting age has been lowered to 16 in municipal elections, otherwise known as local government...

WCHS Staff has started to check Student IDs to double-check that they are seniors before letting them leave campus during lunch.

New lunch rules impact WCHS students

By Claire Moylan, Photo Manager May 31, 2023

After a WCHS student sits through four periods, they finally hear the sound of the bell signaling that it is time for a break from studying, note-taking and working. It is time for lunch. Most students...

Narcan, a life-saving medication that can quickly reverse the effects of opioid overdoses, is now permitted for students to carry in school with the hope that the number of fatal overdoses in MCPS decrease.

MCPS implements a new policy after major drug issues

By Caroline Harless, News Editor May 30, 2023

Within the walls of MCPS, an insidious force has seized control: the fentanyl epidemic. From narratives of misguided experimentation to the victims of peer pressure, fentanyl-induced overdoses have plagued...

WCHSs orchestra concerts are made possible by Orchestra director, Kristofer Sanz. His special mindfulness days puts his students playing and mental health at their best.

Orchestra strikes a chord with Mindfulness

By Brianna Frank, Advertising and Subscriptions Manager May 15, 2023

WCHS’s orchestra has become known for its incredible interactive performances. However, this reputation could not have been formed without the orchestra first bonding as a musical family. The orchestra...

The Walt Whitman High School Chamber Choir directed by Michelle Kim performs The One Who Makes Peace song at the Montgomery County Jewish Educators Alliance (MCJEA) Holocaust Remembrance event.

MCJEA commemorates Holocaust Rememberance Day

By Melissa Redlich, Features Editor May 15, 2023

In 1940, Flora Singer’s life changed forever. She was uprooted from her Belgian Jewish home and taken to the Auschwitz internment camp in Poland. From there, she was battered and bruised, but she survived....

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