Trainer Justin Webb wants to ‘make a difference’
Justin Webb is ARHS’s Athletic Trainer. Webb deals with hundreds of teen athletes per sports season keeping us all safe and healthy. His motto is “the noblest art is that of making others happy.”...
Something needs to change: locking of student bathrooms, installation of vape detectors causing more harm than good
UPDATE: Since the publishing of this article, bathrooms have been re-opened. Bathrooms are only locked, if at all, for short periods and to address student vandalism or vaping. Principal Talib Sadiq sent out an...
Growing safety concerns compiled in letter pleading with HS administration to make changes
In November of 2022, over the course of three weeks, ARHS faculty and staff mentioned enough serious safety concerns to history teacher and union member James Elliott that he decided to type up a...
Can’t stop, won’t stop: supporters for synthetic turf project weigh risks, clap back on no votes
One thing that everyone can agree on is that there is an urgent need to replace the 23-year-old track and field at ARHS. The ARHS track and field facilities have been of concern and...
Peers and teachers continue to mourn loss of Anna Burns
On September 13, the Amherst community lost a beloved friend, Ultimate player, runner, skier, environmentalist, outdoor enthusiast, engaged student, and more in Anna Burns. Burns went into cardiac arrest at the end of a...
Achoo! How do sick students and staff recover from weeklong absences?
Though masking during the pandemic helped many of us avoid not just COVID-19 but also the flu and the common cold, all three (and more!) are back with a vengeance, now that the vast...
‘Choice Block’ set to replace advisory in January
When students return from break in January, they will not be going to their regular advisories on Fridays. Instead, due to complaints from faculty and students about the advisory period being ineffective, students will...
Senior council: working behind scenes to create a memorable end to high school
Senior year is filled with numerous hallmark experiences, from applying to college to planning for prom and graduation. However, none of these events are possible without the senior student council working behind the scenes....
Junior class aims to raise $5K, plan fun bonding activities for class
Though the current junior class did the majority of their ninth-grade schooling online, they all returned to in-person classes as a group in sophomore year. This coming together allowed them to get to know...
Julian Hynes, lover of trees, briefs us on everything Merry Maple
Most of us can call to mind a positive memory involving a tree we loved growing up–climbing it, sitting under it for shade, having a picnic by it. But no one loves trees more...
Field trips are back, and students love them!
One thing that was greatly reduced during pandemic schooling was field trips for students. However, now that ARHS is entering the second year of in-person learning, many teachers across the building are bringing their...
It’s a rap: students build freestyling group one beat, one member at a time
ARHS offers a mountain of official clubs and sports but one evolving freestyling club, known as Amherst’s Secret Rap Club, is made up of a growing number of interesting people who have found a...
Who is stamping your passes? Meet Chloe, Jaida, and Lirey, from the front office
When people step into the main office at ARHS, they will find it decorated for whatever is the latest holiday, from Halloween to Thanksgiving to the winter holidays; filled with plants; and staffed by...
Avery Abbitt: teaching is a way to ‘give back’ and poetry has healing power
Special Education teacher Avery Abbitt is one of the newest additions to the teaching staff at ARHS. He is teaching two Academic Skills classes to ninth and tenth graders and two Topics in English...
New teacher Yasuaki Suzuki has lived a musical life
New teacher Yasuaki Suzuki is both the middle school and high school orchestra director. He teaches Intro to Music and Orchestra at the middle school and Steel Drums Ensemble, String Orchestra, and Music Theory...
Art teacher Elena Betke-Brunswick offers creative haven for students
Elena Betke-Brunswick, one of the newest additions to the ARHS art department, believes that one of the best parts of being an art teacher is being able to help students connect and fall in...
‘Progress over perfection,’ says inspirational new PE teacher Cedric Gonnet
New ARHS Physical Education and Health Teacher Cedric Gonnet is a role model who leads by example. Gonnet embodies the roles of teacher, leader, coach, and trainer, but most of all he is seen...
Jace Chrzanowski: French language opened him up to new culture, ways of expressing himself
Jace Chrzanowski is a newly hired French 4 teacher at ARHS whose mission it is to be knowledgeable, authentic, and inspiring. Chrzanowski is a fourth-generation educator. His mom was a high school English teacher,...
Will Chapman here to ‘help children accomplish their goals’
William Chapman, also known as Mr. Will, is a new paraeducator hired at ARHS to work in tandem with the Dean of Students, Mary Custard—and hall monitors—to heighten safety in the halls, classrooms, lunch...
Film Club: translating ‘creative vision’ to the screen
Seniors Callum McDonald, Jackson Eisenhauer, and Zach Mitrowski, and junior Jackson Barber-Just co-lead ARHS’s Film Club, which contains more than a dozen members and operates on a flexible schedule. Film Club is a “space...
‘Anyone can do math’ the mantra of Math Club
According to Math Club advisor and math teacher Rudy Cassidy, math has the potential to “create a better world” and is an “essential tool” in everyday life. The club meets on Mondays at 3:45...
Girls’ cross country reflects on monumental loss of teammate, Western Mass championship win
With historically strong teams, four Western Mass wins in the last five years, and having qualified for states for more than 30 years consecutively, the members of the girls’ cross country team went into...
Girls’ volleyball nabs Western Mass title in faceoff with Longmeadow
On October 30, the Amherst girls’ varsity volleyball team won Western Mass for the first time since 2016. The girls swept Longmeadow, the same team they lost to in their Western Mass game last...
Coach Travis: boys’ soccer team learned valuable ‘life lessons’ this fall
Although the Amherst boys’ soccer team didn’t have the most stellar year, finishing the season with a record of 6-10-2, Coach Matt Travis and Captain Arthur Vickery both enjoyed playing a leadership role and...
Football team talks highs and lows
The ARHS high school football season finished the season off with a few comeback victories and a record of 5 wins and 6 losses. Captains were juniors Jameson Dion and Neil Cunniffe and seniors...
ARHS/Summit staff demonstrate for fair pay, reject 2 percent COLA
On the sunny morning of May 12, teachers, paraeducators, and staff at ARHS and Summit Academy dressed in their union red colors and gathered to stage a “walk-in” and a chalk-up for fair pay....
Ukrainian-American teacher says ‘don’t get used to’ war, urges support
Alla Azrilyan came to ARHS in 2019, as a member of the ELL department. She spoke with a member of The Graphic staff about the war in Ukraine, her life as a teacher, and...
‘How could I not?’ Nadya Tkachenko journeys to the Ukrainian border to provide support, relief to refugees
When Russia violently invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, very few predicted how rapidly the crisis would escalate, leading to over 7 million people being displaced or fleeing the country. Montague resident Nadya Tkachenko...
Students react to new school policies
On March 21, 2022, a fight broke out at ARHS and one student landed in the hospital. A letter Principal Talib Sadiq sent home to parents was republished in the Daily Hampshire Gazette, in...
Hair cast bounces back after COVID shutdown
This year’s musical, Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical, featured many lively ensemble numbers in which nearly the entire cast was on stage, singing and dancing together while dressed in beautifully colored hippie clothing....
