Sarah Hull

A 20-second walk up a side trail in Wildwood Park near downtown Saratoga leads visitors into an area enclosed in shrubbery, one that is littered with Coors Light cans. Secluded by a ring of tall trees, the park is known among students as a prime location for drug and alcohol usage late at night. One drug user, a student who wished to remain anonymous, said it is common for older students to smoke and drink in an area just behind the park.

Root beer floats, a picnic-style lunch and the opportunity to spend time with their Link Leaders attracted more than 300 freshmen to the upper field for the first annual Link Crew lunch on Oct. 12.

“I gained a better appreciation for sewing and learned that a lot of things sound like ‘mole,’” junior Christopher Vu said. Though it may sound like it, Vu was not commenting on his experience at fashion designer boot camp. Rather, he was referring to the invaluable skills he obtained and the adversity he overcame to reach the final round in chemistry teacher Kathy Nakamatsu’s annual mole contest.

A desire to get ahead of the competition and to learn more has led a small group of students to pursue a difficult but not impossible task each year: studying on their own and taking AP tests in subjects not offered at the school.

The parking violation: a five by three inch, neon yellow, highly adhesive sticker. The library fine: a seemingly mysterious dollar amount that just seems to keep increasing. But according to school officials, these notorious fines often evoke misplaced fear in students.

Sports team captains often form the backbone of a team and are essential to a team’s success, offering motivation and encouragement to fellow team members. The road to becoming a captain, however, involves both dedication and hard work. Captains are either chosen by their coach or elected by their teammates, usually for their strength in leadership or their commitment to the team.

In an effort to go paperless, the special education department has begun the process of converting the paper files of all its students into electronic documents that will be stored on a comprehensive database. The project will significantly reduce the amount of paper currently in storage and allow for a greater ease of access to the files.

The thought of a school psychologist might conjure up images of therapy sessions, with ink-blot tests and probing personal questions. But Mark Atkinson, the school’s hard-working school psychologist and Link Crew coordinator, doesn't perform that kind of therapy.

17. For me, this used to be a golden number, the age I craved to be. Though it holds no particular real world value (it is neither the driving age nor when you become a legal adult), I would always try to imagine what I would look like and how I would act when I finally reached this magical time in my life.

After teaching at Saratoga High for 35 years, English teacher Paul Page thought he was finished and retired at the end of the 2008-2009 school year. But guess what? He’s back!

Turning 18 marks a huge transition for teenagers as they gain the freedoms and responsibilities of the adult world. Many seniors who have already turned 18 will be exercising their right to vote at the upcoming elections that take place Nov. 2.

A decade ago, Eileen Allen was asking her guidance counselor for college advice. Now, a decade later, she is the one who is giving the advice. After graduating from SHS in 2001 and going on to receive her undergraduate degree from Cal Poly in San Luis Opispo, Allen has become the newest member of the guidance department and a Link Crew coordinator. This alumnus hopes her own experiences at Saratoga High will enable her to empathize and easily relate to currents students.

1. Season Record: 7-5 2. Highlight of the season: Beating Monta Vista even with many sick team members 3. Lowlight of the season: Losing at Deep Cliff against Milpitas and Monta Vista on Mar. 15

Question: What is the secret behind the success of the school's award-winning marching band? Among the many possible answers—tireless nights spent rehearsing on the football field, determination to achieve and school-wide appeal. But perhaps the most important reason is the preparation that takes root at Redwood Middle School.

Morning sickness. Food cravings. Maternity clothes. For four faculty members, it is all part of the successive stages of pregnancy. Science teacher Kristen Thomson recently had her second child on April 20 , and speech pathologist Ronda Vierra, English teacher Natasha Ritchie and math teacher Jennifer Mantle are due in the fall.

No matter how many academic courses a student takes during his or her high school years, perhaps the most valuable lessons are taught not in textbooks but by experience. Students who participate in student government positions gain valuable leadership skills that invariably benefit them in the future.

The boys' golf team opened the season with an overwhelming win against Santa Clara with a score of 202-286 (lowest score wins) on Feb. 24. The team then took second in a three team match against Los Gatos and Monta Vista, who placed first and third, respectively, on March 1. "The match against both Los Gatos and Monta Vista was the biggest one of the year," said junior and second starter Kent Paisley. "It wasn't our best match, but we're playing Los Gatos again later this year, so we still have a shot to beat them."

The seniors will host a talent show on April 7 in the McAfee Center to generate funds for their class. The show, organized by senior Chelsea Sabella, will replace Lip Sync, which has been canceled for the past three years because of low participation. "We thought, what if we take kids who want to do Lip Sync, because we always get about three acts, and kids who really wanted to perform, and combined them," said assistant principal Karen Hyde. "It seemed like a really really really good idea, so we'll see how we do."

Freshman Francheska Palmer hesitated, holding the remains of her lunch above the two bins. Recycle or trash? For a second, her hand wavered back and forth between the two before tossing her plastic pasta container into the recycling bin. This short moment of uncertainty happened subconsciously, but it is an example of how most students are puzzled when it comes to what items are recyclable. Looking at the trash bins in the quad, about half of the garbage belongs in the recycle bin next to it and half of the recycling should be in the trash.

While typical students may want to hang out at the mall or go to the movies, horseback riding with friends at Garrod Farms provides a more unique and unusual experience that, for those daring enough to give it a go, will create lifelong memories. Located only three miles from SHS in the Saratoga foothills, Garrod Farms offers over 23 miles of trails that are located on both Garrod Farms' property and the Fremont Older Mid-Peninsula Open Space Preserve. The trails are at an elevation of over 1,000 feet and therefore overlook the entire Silicon Valley as well as San Francisco Bay.

A string quartet softly serenades a large group of guests at the Saratoga Rotary Club while they enjoy food and good company on Dec. 11. Stationed in a corner of the room, the group provides mellow music and easy entertainment. The group, made up of seniors violinist Cindy Chang, violist Kevin Hsu and violinist Carolyn Chen and junior cellist Walter Hsiang, are part of the Tri-M club, who are beginning to perform more often since it is now the holiday season.

The cheer team took home fifth place and qualified for nationals at their first competition of the year on Nov. 8, despite only practicing their entire routine the morning of the competition.

Many students' lives have been or will one day be affected by cancer since one in every six Americans will be diagnosed with some form of it within their lifetime, according to oncologist Manish Bhandari. Bhandari discussed the recent advances in cancer research and detection during his after school presentation in the Library Research Center on Nov. 6. This discussion was the first of what a new club hopes will be many upcoming speakers who will speak on a variety of subjects.

Freshman Christine Lei is hoping students will donate their old jeans and other clothing to help the homeless. She has set up a bin in the main office and at football games and will accept donations through the month of December. The effort, called the Jean Drive, will go an assortment of organizations benefiting the homeless, though most of the donations will go to the West Valley Community Center, she said.

The interest in forming new clubs has increased dramatically since the beginning of the year. As a result, the ASB plans to be more critical in evaluating the qualifications each club must meet. This year, an ASB member will personally visit each club during a meeting.

Mothers. Daughters. Sisters. Friends. Hundreds of thousands of women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year, and over 40,000 women do not survive, according to the American Cancer Society. Science teacher Jenny Garcia and math teachers Kelly Frangieh, Kristen Hamilton, Seema Patel and Laressa Ridge walked 60 miles over the course of three days—Oct. 2, 3 and 4—to support the search for a cure for breast cancer. They walked all around San Francisco, including over the Golden Gate Bridge.

Over a busy summer that witnessed the speedy construction of the new "Court of Dreams" outdoor basketball and volleyball facility, a more subtle, perhaps lesser known project also took place at Saratoga High—the resurfacing of the tennis courts.

“Oh, you gotta’ be kidding me!” girls’ basketball coach Mike Davey shouted as his floater ricocheted off a netless hoop inside Saratoga High’s new “Court of Dreams.” Construction of the Sports Courts was completed over the busy summer under the supervision of Davey, assistant principal Joe Bosco, principal Jeff Anderson and superintendent Cary Matsuoka. During that time, a barren strip of dirt and gravel became a state-of-the-art outdoor basketball and volleyball court.

Sprinting across the shiny hardwood floors after completing my homework, I race into the office and quickly boot up my computer. Anxiously, I wait for Internet Explorer to start up, tapping my fingers nervously against the keyboard. Finally, the page loads and I urgently type in the URL, begging it to speed up. A few seconds later, a wide grin spreads across my face as I read the title “Updated: 03-2-09.” It may seem strange that I get so excited for a simple updated webpage, but fanfiction.net has become my main source of reading material, containing millions of stories based on characters and settings from popular books, movies, and television shows. The website provides anyone with the means to publish their writing and receive feedback in a completely anonymous setting.