Photo from Unsplash Every morning during the second period announcements, a habit has quietly developed in the classroom. Conversations continue, students play games on their computers and others keep their heads down. What was once a shared routine among students in elementary school has now become background noise for our current distractions in life. I hope others are aware of what their unintentional protest to the pledge means. Standing for the pledge is now seen as ra

Photo from https://es.geneastar.org/genealogia/wilsonkathe/katie-wilson Seattle’s new mayor, Katie Wilson, stood out during her campaign for her background in grassroots organizing. However, beyond just her passion for community activism, she enters office with an agenda that reflects her experience in policy reform; an agenda that will matter far beyond Seattle’s city limits, as her policies start to affect Bellevue residents who commute, work, and move through Seattle ever

Graphic by Mingze Shi Every 10 years, Washington state redraws voting district boundaries based on new census data. According to Oregon Public Broadcasting, the current bipartisan system, where Democrats and Republicans decide the maps together, has been in place for over 30 years. But after seeing states like Texas redraw their voting maps to favor Republicans, Washington Democrats are attempting to do the same to balance Texas out. To maintain a majority in the House afte

Photo by Brooklyn O'Connor There are nearly 200 diverse classes offered at Bellevue High School, and many of them are social studies. But there are very few classes dedicated to studying the variety of cultural identities around us. In a city and school that is approximately 40% Asian American (the highest racial percentage), how much do we actually know of their history? While major detrimental events like the Chinese Exclusion Act and Japanese internment are certainly not

Graphic by Brooklyn O' Connor Beginning in the spring of 2026, Alaska Airlines will expand its west coast, transcontinental and international flight network. As Bellevue High School looks forward to mid-winter break, spring break and summer break, this new expansion creates endless possibilities for travel. On a domestic scale, Alaska is revamping its services and adding two new routes: Seattle to Tulsa, Oklahoma, starting March 18, and Arcata-Eureka, California, starting

Students learn about the extradition of Nicholas Maduro. Photo by Ben Koh The extradition of Nicolas Maduro was a terrible idea from the jump. Although many have pointed out Maduro's notorious abuses of power, and how his economic policy ran Venezuela into the ground, his extradition is bad not just for Venezuela, but also the world. People across the world were stunned when the extradition happened. Some students at Bellevue high school found out through social media. “I t

Students learn about the extradition of Nicholas Maduro. Photo by Ben Koh The conflicting opinions surrounding Maduro’s alleged kidnapping plot is an example of how global instability can reach Bellevue High School and the students within. It is important to keep an open mind to such sensitive topics and understand the facts before forming an opinion. Just three days after the start of 2026, shocking news spread across the world. United States forces had bombed Caracas, th

Bellevue's Light Rail, while flashy, often fails to meet the needs of its passengers. Photo by Ben Koh The East Link light rail connecting Bellevue with Seattle was originally expected to open in late 2023. After repeated rounds of delays, from spring 2025 to March 28 of this year, the light rail project remains unfinished. The officials reported significant construction problems over the I-90 bridge, but the details are rarely revealed. As years pass, it has become clear th

Graphic by Ben Koh Just a few of years ago, gambling was limited to the casino. Cards were played on cafeteria tables. People participated in friendly March Madness brackets or made weekend bets during football games. The risk wasn’t available on every play. Betting stayed connected to games of luck and never really seeped into daily life. But last year that boundary vanished. A new form of betting has emerged, driven by prediction markets that connect speculation to real-w

Photo Credit / Ifrah Naaz It’s test day, and every single student pulls out a calculator from their backpack, each with a similar interface, the familiar Texas logo and the words “Texas Instruments” inscribed. The students simultaneously press the same familiar buttons on their calculators to reset the memory, and the teacher walks around checking the identical screens for confirmation, then passes out the test. Nationwide, the story is the same: students just won’t stop usi

Although Bellevue has historically been known for its excellent football program, the boys swim team has gone under the radar. As a result of a first place finish in the 200 meter medley relay, as well as ten additional top eight finishes in different events, Bellevue stood top of the top of the perch at the state competition, the first time since 2016. This year, the defending champs are well on their way towards repeating their state title, with wins at all but one swim mee

Many Bellevue student athletes don’t just balance school sports and their regular classes but also balance their club sports as well. Club sports are rigorous and can take up significant hours of the day. Finding an effective way to balance school, extracurriculars, club sports and school sports practices can be difficult, yet this task is one that many students find methods to overcome. “Balancing lacrosse while being in school can be hard because sometimes it’s physically a

Bellevue High School’s girls basketball team is enjoying a stellar season as the 3A’s No. 1 team with a 15-3 record. With strong chemistry, plenty of talent, and daily practice, the Wolverines have established themselves as one of the best in the state of Washington. One of the Wolverine’s major assets has been the team’s younger players. Freshman Iyla Jones has quickly become an exceptional player for Bellevue, ranked #2 in the state of Washington for the class of 2029, and

Listen up Bellevue! This is a big controversy that needs to be discussed. Is the Seahawks defense this year better than their 2013 Super Bowl winning defense? “Nothing will ever be as good as the Legion of Boom. The Seahawks D this year is really good, but Richard Sherman was the goat, the greatest of all time,” senior Myles Dochtermann said. In 2013, the Seahawks defense led their team to a Super Bowl win, earning the nickname “Legion of Boom.” The LOB consisted of some o

For years, Bellevue High assemblies followed an unwritten order: roll call with upperclassmen booing the freshmen, the classic drum-and-clap, and finally, seniors rushing the floor for a mosh. Underclassmen watched from the bleachers, already imagining their own turn to experience these traditions. This year, that moment never came. Moshing was banned, seniors were told to remain seated, and assemblies felt noticeably quieter. For Bellevue senior Brody Gayte, the change was e

Student involvement is consistently dwindling. Every event or volunteer opportunity feels desolate, and food and toy drives seem to lack effort and involvement from participants. Students’ involvement and school spirit has consistently been a problem at Bellevue High School, so what can students do to help? Students involving themselves in school activities is essential, so it is important to know why many avoid getting involved and in what ways students are prevented from p

A painting can take decades to finish. A song can take years to reach perfection. A sweater can take months to crochet. While they are all around us, fine arts tend to have a quieter exposure than some other extracurricular activities of students at Bellevue High School. Although many students get dressed up and come for our football games, few people publicize or attend Bellevue High’s art exhibitions. Despite this, the projects that they've been working on teach the importa

Bellevue students have been busy putting their mark on the world. Some are utilizing their business skills to create clever ways to make a buck, while are passionate about spreading important messages to those around them. These students aren’t just juggling school, but also managing costs, production, and communication. Seniors Rory Ritchie and Justin Lee decided to use their lacrosse and business skills to create their own small business of teaching a lacrosse camp for ki

ALL PHOTOS & GRAPHICS/FINLEY GERRON If you’ve ever powered on your TV to watch a Netflix show, then opened TikTok or Geometry Dash, you may be surprised to learn that you’re not alone. This practice, dubbed, “second-screening,” describes watching a movie or show while simultaneously engaging with a secondary device, often a smartphone. It’s become increasingly common in the last decade, and accordingly, production companies are accounting for it in their media. According t