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The Student News Site of Palo Alto High School

The Paly Voice

The Student News Site of Palo Alto High School

The Paly Voice

The Student News Site of Palo Alto High School

The Paly Voice

Community members gathered to protest against Tesla CEO Elon Musk and stand up for democracy and equality yesterday afternoon in front of the Tesla showroom on El Camino Real. According to event organizer Melissa Dinwiddie, the demonstration is in opposition to what she said was an oligarchy taking place in America, not the Tesla company itself. “We have nothing against Tesla drivers or Tesla cars,” Dinwiddie said. “This is absolutely against Musk. … He has no business interfering with [and] destroying the government."
Community members protest to defend democracy
Celina Lee, Senior Staff Writer • April 20, 2025

Waving bold, handmade signs and cheering at cars passing by, Palo Alto community members gathered to “Protest Elon Musk’s Illegal Government...

Students crowd around the Taiwan table on the Palo Alto High School Quad at lunch, on Thursday, their plates holding food from 27 different cultures and countries, including mini boba drinks representing Taiwanese traditions. According to sophomore Meghna Singh, she enjoyed the delicious food and learning about the many different cultures. “I'm really happy that the school … is doing it for the first time and I thought that food was absolutely divine,” Singh said. “It was really fun to see all the different cultures and different types of food.”
PTSA hosts first Spring Fling to celebrate cultural diversity
Alex Chang and Lise Concolato April 4, 2025

Following Palo Alto High School's first cultural celebration & Spring Fling, organizers and contributors who hosted a multicultural music...

Members of the Paly Poly Club wear vibrant Polynesian attire and perform a traditional dance. According to June Tau, junior and performer, the assembly was a great opportunity to experience other cultures and backgrounds. "It [assembly] brings awareness to respect everyone's other cultures," Tau said. "I liked how we were able to see not only ours today, but other countries as well. It was nice to see that everyone comes from different things and to also respect their background."
Global traditions take center stage at first-ever cultural assembly
Navya Narayanan and Alex Chang April 4, 2025

A hush fell over the gym as students stepped up to the microphone, singing the lines of "Wait Till I Get On My Robe" by Brandon Waddles. Moments...

Junior Christina Gu tutors in the Tower Learning Center after school at Palo Alto High School. Gu is a peer tutor in the newly-launched SAT prep program and said she aims for students to learn that they are seen and heard through the peer tutoring. “I hope students gain the knowledge that they are actually supported,” Gu said. “Just because your parents can't get your resources doesn't mean you can't find it yourself. Always ask for help and there will be help.”
Tower Learning Center launches peer SAT prep
Veronica Qiu and Mayu Altekar-Okazaki April 3, 2025

The Tower Learning Center is piloting an SAT preparatory system to pair students with peer tutors at Palo Alto High School following its launch...

Senior Ivan Sandler and his friends work on the mural depicting "SKO VIKES" after school. According to Sandler, he enjoys seeing his friends paint, work together and learn more about art. “It’s really fun to see my friends who have no idea about art or have never done anything like that be so crafty and collaborate in this project that means a lot to me," Sandler said.
‘SKO VIKES’ mural sparks school spirit
Navya Narayanan and Veronica Qiu April 3, 2025

A new mural reading “SKO VIKES” now covers the wall of the auto shop at Palo Alto High School, adding color and strengthening the sense of...

Palo Alto High School administrators say they have leads on identifying an individual they allege was responsible for posting flyers Sunday on campus with what they called 'inappropriate information'. According to Assistant Principal Jerry Berkson, students should seek help if needed. "If someone feels threatened, they can come see us and we can give them some support," Berkson said.
Administration receives leads in effort to identify ‘inappropriate’ flyer distributor
Ava Knapp and Joy Tan March 28, 2025

Editor’s Note: We have removed the original photo following confirmation of the individual’s identification. Palo Alto High School administrators...

Viking senior Oliver Chancellor defends against Lancer junior Andrew Makris in the final quarter versus the Saint Francis high school Lancers Thursday night at home. According to Viking junior Lucas Grodnitzsky, the Vikings need to work on the fundamentals. "We could work on catching and passing, especially on offense," Grodnitzsky said. "The other thing is ground balls. St Francis was a heavy ground ball team, and they took advantage of it and scored a lot."
Boys’ lacrosse defeated by Lancers
Andrew Zhao and Kevin O'Brien April 21, 2025
Benjamin Kim Labito for Palo Alto High School's volleyball team serves during Wednesdays home match. According to Paly volleyball head coach Daryl Chan, he wants to work on the team energy. "They keep the energy up throughout the course of the game to be proactive and to make something happen," Chan said. "So that was really exciting to get our bench going, and then we played some really great defense, so our back row was really on fire."
Palo Alto volleyball defeats Knights
Alex Rytokoski, Reporter • April 19, 2025
The "extra small group" performers from the Palo Alto Dance teams' jazz/contemporary piece "Eight" points to their first-place award in United Spirit Associations National Competition March 23 in Anaheim, California. According to dance team sophomore officer Karin Blumenfeld, the pressure of continuing the team winning streak was a standout moment at nationals. "A big mindset this year coming off of two wins in the previous year after not having won for a very long time was the expectation on us to win," Blumenfeld said. "There have been so many years where we haven't [won] and we were definitely super nervous, but we pulled through."
Dance team wins nationals
Joy Tan and Lise Concolato April 3, 2025
Tone
Celeste Nicole and Anay Joshi engage in genetics activities in biology class, building their foundational skills for future science courses. According to Chemistry Honors teacher Nicole Loomis, the planned merging of biology and biology honors next year may create challenges for teachers. “Because Bio is a class that everyone has to take to graduate, the range of student skills in the class is very wide,” Loomis said. “Breaking it into honors and regular lanes makes it much more feasible for teachers to gear their class toward the students either on the higher end or the lower end of those skills."
Opinion: Cautious optimism for biology lane merge
Priya Tamura and Joyce Ma April 19, 2025

Is a combined biology class truly best for student learning at Palo Alto High School? Starting next school year, Paly freshmen will no longer...

Editorial: Vote Chiu and Kamhi for school board
Editorial: Vote Chiu and Kamhi for school board
The Paly Voice Staff November 4, 2024

Editor's Note: We have since been informed on several points made in the editorial and have corrected...

K-pop fans eagerly wait to enter Oakland's Paramount Theatre on Thursday to watch TREASURE's first U.S. Tour, "Special Moment."
Oakland experiences ‘Special Moment’ with TREASURE’s first U.S. tour
Veronica Qiu and Sophie Zhang April 13, 2025

The colorful, rotating light beams shine on fans as they excitedly jump around, pumping their arms. TREASURE splashes water into the audience....

Palo Alto community members enjoy dinner provided by local restaurants on March 8 at the Lucie Stern Community Center as part of the city's Ifar dinner event. According to Shounak Dharap, vice president of the Palo Alto Unified School District board, events that gather the community allow for interactions that wouldn't occur normally. "They [community events] let us reach out and talk to other folks we might not normally interact with, or who we might interact with in very different ways," Dharap said. "It allows folks to see their elected representatives in a different light, in a way that is more community building and less just in their governance roles."
Palo Alto’s Ramadan Iftar dinner connects community
Allison Ma and Sophie Zhang March 20, 2025

Warm glow of fairy lights. Butter chicken, falafel and pita. Lively conversations among event guests. These were all present at Palo Alto's...

The Paly Voice reviews 97th Academy Awards Best Picture nominees
The Paly Voice reviews 97th Academy Awards Best Picture nominees
Nathan Jiang, Senior Staff Writer • March 2, 2025

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences hosted the 97th Academy Awards (informally known as the Oscars) today. Here is The Paly Voice’s...

Ralph Fiennes as "Cardinal Lawrence" the Dean of the College Of Cardinals in "Conclave" which is nominated for eight awards at the 2025 Oscars.
‘Conclave’: Chaos on either side
Kevin O'Brien, Managing Editor, Culture • March 2, 2025

In a religious film centered around the election of a new pope, director Edward Berger incorporates numerous angles in “Conclave,” released...