The Student News Site of Saratoga High School

The Saratoga Falcon
A view of the Palisades fire from the seventh floor of Class of ‘24 Brielle Wong’s UCLA dormitory.
LA fires prompt alumni attending UCLA to return home at start of quarter
January 17, 2025
Donald Trump will be sworn in for his second four-year term in office on Jan. 20, 2025.
What will the next four years look like under a Trump presidency?
January 17, 2025
Jason Shiuan will be honored with the award at CASMEC on Jan. 16.
Music director named band educator of the year in California
January 15, 2025
Sophomore Lauren Song performs as Clara in Los Gatos Ballet’s production of “The Nutcracker.”
Dancers perform in ‘The Nutcracker’ with the Los Gatos Ballet
December 18, 2024
Casavant’s frequent drop-ins on water polo games and practices brought energy to the team.
In supporting student athletes, staff members make important connections
December 15, 2024
Sisters Richa Moorjani and Sheherazaad are both pursuing careers in the entertainment industry.
Sister alumni navigate complex world of Hollywood and the entertainment industry
January 9, 2025
Playing Grace Fryer and Tom Kreider respectively, senior Kat Aldrete and junior Larry O’Brien star in the SHS ‘Radium Girls’ fall play.
Senior Kat Aldrete shines as lead role in ‘Radium Girls’
December 14, 2024
A perfect sparkly Christmas decoration to get you in the festive mood.
Top 10: Christmas Decorations
December 13, 2024
There are various ways to approach studying math competitions such as the AMC.
Students prepare for math competitions with various methods and mediums
December 13, 2024
AP Physics teachers Tom Casavant and Matthew Welander discuss a change in their upcoming lesson plans.
Class-alike teachers collaborate to improve and standardize student experiences
December 13, 2024
The team poses for a picture on Jan. 16 after a home victory against MacDonald.
Boys’ soccer defeats MacDonald, marks three-game win streak
January 18, 2025
Crowd arises in ovation for Falcons’ impressive comeback
Boys’ basketball rallies back from 13-point deficit, securing top spot in El Camino
January 17, 2025
The boys basketball team poses after their game with American High School on Dec. 7.
Boys’ basketball secures second place at James Lick Invitational despite key injuries
December 14, 2024
Free throw attempt from the team's recent scrimmage against Wilcox on Dec. 7.
Freshman basketball team brought back for the first time since COVID
December 13, 2024
Senior Daniel Jadali shooting a freethrow
For Falcon players, basketball is a year-round commitment
December 13, 2024
Kash Patel
The weaponization of the presidential pardon ought to end
January 13, 2025
In a capitalist world, informed journalism takes second priority.
Billionaires should step back from publications they own
January 12, 2025
Acting Superintendent Heath Rocha is looking towards a year of cooperation.
Staff editorial: Acting Superintendent Heath Rocha is the right choice to lead the district out of recent turmoil
January 11, 2025
The logo of the Better Canvas extension for students to download.
100-word rave: “Better Canvas” is just better
December 13, 2024
Red lights are often run at the intersection of Highway 85 and Saratoga Avenue.
Saratoga drivers: Simmer down and use more caution, please
December 13, 2024
The three best dishes we ordered at Ippudo: Akashu Modern, Chicken Karaage, and Pork Buns
Our visit to Ippudo: A cozy experience with tastes beyond ramen
January 17, 2025
If all of our icks culminated into one man, this is what he would look like.
Top 10: Icks
January 17, 2025
Piling on ten layers of clothing is not a comfortable experience.
Skiing? s-NO-w thank you.
January 15, 2025
The three bears often travel, stacked on top of each other.
‘We Bear Bears’ are still the bear-y best trio
January 12, 2025
We tasted and reviewed the arrangement of six Thanksgiving pies.
Are Crumbl’s holiday desserts worth the hype?
January 12, 2025

The Saratoga Falcon

The Saratoga Falcon
Emily Wu

Emily Wu, School Scope Editor

All content by Emily Wu
If all of our icks culminated into one man, this is what he would look like.

Top 10: Icks

Shirina Cao and Emily Wu
January 17, 2025
Christmas music is fine no matter what season you’re in.

Photo or Graphic for: Christmas music can be played, shamelessly, any time of the year

Skyler Mao
December 13, 2024
By both popular and electoral vote, Trump becomes the 47th president of the United States.

Photo or Graphic for: Why a second Trump presidency won’t be the end of democracy

Adarsh Peruvemba
December 13, 2024
Free time is a blessing.

My 2024 Winter Bucket List: I’ll do all the things I’ve wanted to do but never got to

Emily Wu
December 13, 2024
In recent years, an increasing number of students have applied early to college.

Photo or Graphic for: Class of ’25 sees an increased number of early college applicants

Caleb Yu and Skyler Mao
December 13, 2024
Having fun in the snow is one of my favorite holiday pastimes.

Photo or Graphic for: Snow will always be an essential part of the holiday season

Seabert Mao
December 13, 2024
Private California colleges will end the practice of legacy admissions by Sept. 1, 2025.

California’s legacy admissions ban indicates growing trend toward equal opportunity

Emily Wu
December 5, 2024
Sometimes your sibling buzzes around you like an annoying fly you can’t get rid of.

Photo or Graphic for: Top 10 ways to annoy your sibling

Seabert Mao and Skyler Mao
October 27, 2024

Music therapy class helps CBI students with self-expression and communication

Emily Wu
October 27, 2024
In high school, there are tons of homework assignments you have to do.

Photo or Graphic for: Top 10 homework assignments

Bryan Zhao
October 27, 2024
The cozy, and a little squishy, home for my Squishmallows.

Squishmallows: the lovable series that overtook my bed

Emily Wu
October 27, 2024
Judges receive rubrics to score each performance out of 160 possible points.

How are Homecoming performances ranked?

Shirina Cao and Emily Wu
October 20, 2024
The crevice is widening between the ideologies of America’s two leading parties.

Photo or Graphic for: Deepening political divides are fragmenting America

Bryan Zhao
September 26, 2024
History classes rely on using reliable sources when discussing political events.

Photo or Graphic for: When politics intrude into the classroom

Evangelina Stepanchenko and Tanvee Tirthapura
September 26, 2024
Keeping a balanced schedule can be hard in a 24-hour day.

Facing 11th grade: my new lifestyle for the new year

Emily Wu
September 19, 2024
This so called “trendy” sport leaves the rest of the racquetball community in quite the pickle.

Photo or Graphic for: A plea to pickleballers from a ticked off tennis player

Alec Guan
September 19, 2024
Casavant derives Newton’s second law to the class.

Photo or Graphic for: A survival guide to AP Physics 1 and 2

Renisha Mandal
September 18, 2024
Junior Thalea Charton passes the ball during an after-school practice.

Season preview: Girls’ water polo tries to stay afloat with only 8 players

Emily Wu and Nika Svizhenko
September 18, 2024
Our conversation with ChatGPT.

Photo or Graphic for: Can an AI chatbot be your new best friend?

Sunny Cao and William Norwood
September 18, 2024
Under the 90 degrees heat, this table is like a furnace to sit on.

100-word rant: Why are shaded lunch tables so hard to find?

Emily Wu
September 16, 2024
Amanda Lupoli fills out a Venn diagram with input from students in her 6th period AP U.S. History class.

Photo or Graphic for: New history teacher emphasizes instilling critical thinking skills

Amy Miao
September 14, 2024
English teacher Amy Keys makes masks as part of a Día de los Muertos workshop in Oaxaca.

Veteran teachers return to the classroom after taking leaves last year

Emily Wu
September 14, 2024
Kyleen Liao and Naveed Kasnavi are the Class of `24 valedictorian and salutatorian, respectively

Class of ‘24 valedictorian and salutatorian announced

Emily Wu
June 4, 2024
tyler be like

Journalism and English 9 MAP teacher receives Teacher of the Year award

Emily Wu
May 17, 2024
Junior Sarah Lim prepares to hit a ball in front of her, towards a projector-screen golf simulator.

Technology in Sports: Athletes using  recent advancements to improve their skills

Emily Wu
May 21, 2024
Different things make different people happy.

Taking Toga’s Temperature: What does happiness mean to you? 

Shirina Cao and Emily Wu
May 17, 2024
I felt a thump when stopping at the traffic light.

My ups and downs as a new driver

Emily Wu
May 15, 2024
Emily, Shirina and Amy hold up the finished tanghulu while sugary water drips onto the floor.

The viral sweet treat tanghulu: Is it worth all the hype?

Shirina Cao, Jessica Li, Amy Miao, and Emily Wu
May 10, 2024
English and Map 10 teacher Marcos Cortez surfs in the Santa Cruz shoreline.

Surfing in Santa Cruz: Junior and English teacher find relaxation riding waves

Amy Miao and Emily Wu
March 29, 2024
Self-portrait finals projects (Caleb Yu left, Franky Zheng top right, Vivienne Brooks bottom right).

Roaming campus with a purpose, Digital Photography students hone skills that can be used for a lifetime

Shirina Cao and Emily Wu
March 27, 2024
The 14 smurfs that are the pride and joy of my childhood. 

In fevered pursuit of Happy Meal Smurfs: a quest for the ages

Emily Wu
March 26, 2024
Fluffy socks: the cute and comfy essential for winter wear

Fluffy socks: the cute and comfy essential for winter wear

Emily Wu
March 26, 2024
The dramatic difference in body type between Ursula and Ariel indirectly villainizes certain “undesirable” features.

Disney dysmorphia: How a beloved childhood franchise instills unrealistic beauty standards and gender bias

Shirina Cao and Emily Wu
March 21, 2024
Social media can shorten students’ attention span and hinder their academic performance.

Photo or Graphic for: Down the online rabbit hole: Students find social media to be detrimental to academic performance

Richard Fan and Alec Guan
March 3, 2024
Crafting club members thread elastic string through beads to make friendship bracelets on Oct. 26.

Crafting club provides haven for relaxation

Sasha Prasad and Emily Wu
February 8, 2024
Junior Angie Chen tells her story of body dysmorphia at the Speak Up for Change assembly on Jan. 26. 

Speak Up for Change assembly: Students and staff discuss healing by seeking help, body dysmorphia, pursuing passions

Mitchell Chen, Andrew Lin, and Emily Wu
January 27, 2024
New Wellness Center coordinator Thea Widmer works at a desk and checks in with students as they arrive on Nov. 27. 

Wellness Center reopens under new coordinator

Amy Miao and Emily Wu
December 7, 2023
Junior Rani Khanna tweezes metal pieces together for a batch of earrings over Thanksgiving break. 

Friends pool talents to create jewelry-making non-profit

Emily Wu
December 7, 2023
Members sit in a line with a buzzer system for practice on Nov. 29 in room 1011, Chemistry teacher Kathy Nakamatsu’s classroom.

Science Bowl, seeking a repeat of recent successes, adjusts to loss of graduated seniors

Sasha Prasad and Emily Wu
December 5, 2023
Selina Chen anchors at “Maroc TV”, Mohammed V University’s TV Station in Rabat, Morocco.

In her gap year, alumna becomes reporter in Morocco and learns real-world lessons

Amy Miao and Emily Wu
December 4, 2023
Substitute teacher Siddhartha Punj explains key coding vocabulary during an AP Computer Science lesson on Nov. 27.

Long-term substitute AP Computer Science teacher hired

Shirina Cao and Emily Wu
December 3, 2023
Students unload boxes of cookie dough into the music building for distribution on Nov. 13.

Music Boosters cookie dough fundraiser raises $10k+

Amy Miao and Emily Wu
December 3, 2023
Cis-gender men overshadow women as they enthusiastically wave resumes at recruiters.

Cis-gender men crashing the 2023 Grace Hopper Conference serves as a dangerous reminder of the tech industry’s gender imbalance

Amy Miao and Emily Wu
December 1, 2023
Sofia Hoffman and Elisa Pattullo work on glazing their decorative coil pot on Oct. 11.

Ceramics gives students creative freedom and hopes to recover from recent loss of interest

Shirina Cao and Emily Wu
November 6, 2023
Naveed Kasnavi holds binder clips to mark 2 inches above table as sophomores Samvrith Bandi (left) and Akash Gupta (right) arm wrestle during a club meeting on Oct. 19.

Arm Wrestling Club seeks to boost popularity of the unconventional sport

Sasha Prasad and Emily Wu
November 6, 2023
SHS’s website has received a clean new look as the school wifi gets a major overhaul.

Photo or Graphic for: Major updates made to WiFi system and school website

Derek Liang and Eric Shi
October 21, 2023
Sophia Tsives (back row, left) poses with her team after winning bronze at the World Championships.

Sophomore wins bronze with national team at the 2023 Artistic Swimming World Championships

Amy Miao and Emily Wu
October 18, 2023
Tamashiro provides a therapy session to a student in the ASSIST program.

New ASSIST therapist provides support to struggling students

Natalie Chua and Emily Wu
September 29, 2023
The club plans to donate projects made by members to homeless shelters and hospitals, helping the community while also spreading the art of knitting.

Knit For Needs supports community through shelter donations

Sasha Prasad and Emily Wu
September 29, 2023
Wu clings onto the wall while warming up for the day’s climb.

Photo or Graphic for: English teacher rocks at rock climbing

George Huang
December 1, 2022
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