The Student News Site of Walt Whitman High School

The Black and White

The Student News Site of Walt Whitman High School

The Black and White

The Student News Site of Walt Whitman High School

The Black and White

Exploring lying

By Peter Hoogstraten June 16, 2015

Did you know that I’ve never told a lie? All my life, I’ve always tried to tell the absolute truth. I’ve never told a lie to benefit myself, or to benefit others. And that’s the truth. In...

Gender-neutral pronouns: the next step for today’s progressive world

Gender-neutral pronouns: the next step for today’s progressive world

By Peter Hoogstraten May 27, 2015

I recently found out that my twenty-four-year-old cousin, born a male and treated as one until now, no longer identifies as either standard gender. My cousin has asked to be referred to as “Holland,”...

Essential items every classroom needs

By Peter Hoogstraten February 9, 2015

If there’s one thing I detest, it’s when I make the long walk from my seat to the middle of the classroom, only to find that there isn’t a box of tissues present. At that point I’m left with a...

The growing role of social media in politics

By Peter Hoogstraten January 10, 2015

The blue and white of Facebook, the bluebird of Twitter, and the camera of Instagram are synonymous with selfies and #tbt. They’re also, however, a medium for public debate on highly controversial issues. Elizabeth...

The multiple facets of boredom

By Peter Hoogstraten December 10, 2014

You know that feeling when the world seems to slow down and time begins to trudge along through a pool of molasses? Your eyes glaze over and a bit of drool dribbles down your chin? We’ve all been there...

Whitman hosts second drug and alcohol forum

By Peter Hoogstraten November 6, 2014

Around 200 parents and students attended a Drugs and Alcohol Forum organized by the Whitman Stress Busters Committee and Montgomery County Collaboration Council Wednesday night in the auditorium. This...

The importance of childhood

By Peter Hoogstraten November 2, 2014

There's no shame in yearning for childhood innocence. Especially in a high-stress environment like Whitman, it's easy for something to snap and for us to revert back to responsibility-free wonder and glee....

Do you really know your friends?

By Peter Hoogstraten October 15, 2014

Pick a friend of yours. Any friend. Now as accurately as you can, try to describe an average day of his or her life. What’s his or her school day like? What extra-curricular activities is he or she doing?...

Ways to improve the start of school

By Peter Hoogstraten September 17, 2014

With the first few weeks of school under our belts and the long grind ahead of us, now is an appropriate time to look back at the first couple weeks and examine what went well and what didn’t. As a...

Hall passes, like this one in chemistry teacher Peyton Fords room, should no longer be used.  Photo by Peter Hoogstraten.

Hall passes shouldn’t be used

By Peter Hoogstraten May 20, 2014

Some are fluffy animals, some are World War II helmets and some are hastily ripped pieces of paper from your notebook. They’re hall passes, and they don’t make any sense. Half of you are probably...

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