The student news site of Western Albemarle High School - Crozet, VA

The Western Hemisphere

The student news site of Western Albemarle High School - Crozet, VA

The Western Hemisphere

The student news site of Western Albemarle High School - Crozet, VA

The Western Hemisphere

Across the state, students, like these at Princess Anne High School in Virginia Beach, organized walkouts to protest Youngkin’s new model policies.

Get Them Out of Here: Youngkin’s Model Policies Violate the Rights of Trans Students

Opal Kendall, Editor-in-Chief January 4, 2023

Trigger Warning: This article contains brief mentions of self harm and suicide. In case you missed it, the Youngkin administration is attacking the basic human rights of Virginia students. Shocker....

Claire McMahon shares the discrimination and harassment she experiences while reporting on sports for the Western Hemisphere.

Claire McMahon: Pretty Young Thing

Claire Mc, Sports Editor January 4, 2023

Women in sports fields are often unrepresented, disproportionately reported, ignored, and mistreated. Women’s participation in sports journalism is still new. Female journalists began reporting on...

Things I Wish I Knew Before Applying to College

Things I Wish I Knew Before Applying to College

Lee Marcel, Editor-in-Chief June 10, 2022

As a first born child, college applications seemed incredibly daunting. I didn’t have siblings or older friends to tell me what to do. I was super stressed about applications due to all the counselors...

slide showing the definition of anti-racism

Lawsuit Seeks to Undermine Essential Education About Race and Culture

Opal Kendall, Assistant Editor March 16, 2022

Let’s talk lawsuit. On December 22, 2021, five local families, all with children from the Western feeder pattern, filed a lawsuit against the Superintendent's Office and the Albemarle County School Board,...

Sign Language:  A Language Without Sound

Sign Language: A Language Without Sound

Thea Spitzner, Staff Writer June 7, 2021

Sign language is not just for deaf people! It’s for everyone.  Studies have shown that ASL can benefit all babies, not just those who are deaf, or diagnosed disabled. Lane Rebelo, founder of Tiny...

Student Sandra Wicks, a member of the Charlottesville Twelve, enters Venable Elementary School on September 8, 1959.

Students Must Learn the Hard History of their School Systems

Opal Kendall, Staff Writer June 4, 2021

The Anti-Racism Policy, adopted by Albemarle County in 2019, recognizes that "educators play a vital role in reducing racism and inequity by recognizing the manifestations of racism, creating culturally...

Pictured left to right: Sheikh Mansour, owner of Manchester City FC, Florentino Perez, president of Real Madrid CF, and Joel Glazer, owner of Manchester United FC

European Football Survives in Spite of Owners

Tatiana Bird, Staff Writer May 24, 2021

It’s hard to quantify what European football means to its fans. While it may seem inane to most people, the relationship between a fan and their team is not unlike a marriage. Fans endure the highs and...

Sophomore Thea Spitzner enjoys yoga and studying American Sign Language.

I Am Not Defined By My Disability

Thea Spitzner, Staff Writer May 19, 2021

My name is Theodora Spitzner and I am a student with an identified disability, Down’s Syndrome. But that’s not a complete definition of me.  I started preschool in the year of 2007 when I turned...

What is Life Like Without Social Media?

What is Life Like Without Social Media?

Brian O'Dea, Managing Editor May 5, 2021

Speaking from experience, social media is an addiction, and from my observations, it has most of my peers hooked. Odds are if you use social media once, you also use it a lot. Not even accounting for age,...

“One of the first conditions of happiness is that the link between man and nature should not be broken.”

How to Participate in Earth Day 2021

Marja-Helena Barrett, Staff Writer April 20, 2021

The first Earth Day took place on April 22, 1970, after people became increasingly more aware of environmental concerns and their effect on human health due to the publication of Rachel Carson’s Silent...

Theres No Place Like Home

There’s No Place Like Home

Julianne Kirby, Editor-in-Chief March 13, 2020

My childhood lines up with the history of Crozet’s Master plan and population “boom”-- my family moved into a new house in a small development in 2002. Since, I’ve watched the woods behind my house...

Not the Time to Draw the Line

Jack Tueting , Staff Writer March 11, 2020

In 2010, Republicans nationwide were swept into power. Anti-Obama sentiment was high, the Tea Party had peaked and Democrats who traditionally voted stayed home for the midterms. As a result, the House...