The official student news site of Westview High School

The Nexus

The official student news site of Westview High School

The Nexus

The official student news site of Westview High School

The Nexus

Ella Jiang

Ella Jiang, News Editor

All content by Ella Jiang
Jordyn Vales (9) passes the baton to Kaitlyn Arciaga (10) to finish the second leg of the 4x400 relay, March 23. The team ended the relay with a time of 3.58.

Girls 4×400 relay breezes past record

Ella Jiang, News Editor April 5, 2024

When it comes down to the last 100 meters in the 4x400m relay race, muscle cramping and blurring vision have to be shoved away as an afterthought.   “If you’re hurting you have to push through,”...

USE THIS ONE

[Photo] The Death of Deep Thought

Phoebe Vo, Visuals Editor April 5, 2024

Jake Scarbel (11) jumps over a dirt hill on a trail in the Peñasquitos Canyon on his Surron bike, March 5. He started mountain biking nearly 10 years ago before transitioning to his current motorcycle-e-bike hybrid that he customizes and repairs himself.

Biking off the beaten path

Ella Jiang, News Editor March 15, 2024

Whether it's cruising down the coast in Del Mar or deep in the Peñasquitos Canyons, on soaring jumps or roadside wheelies — Jake Scarbel (11) rides his Surron bike everywhere. His dad finds it cool,...

Ethan Madrideo (12) celebrates in front of the crowd after winning Mr. Bayanihan, Feb. 2. In the cultural competitions, Madrideo showcased his talents to the audience.

Madrideo crowned first Mr. Bayanihan in four years

Sophia Chen and Ella Jiang February 16, 2024

The theater was warm as a night of laughter and cheers neared an end, Feb. 2. Spotlights illuminated 10 boys lined up on stage as they awaited the grand reveal of the show in silent anticipation. Before...

Barnes & Noble heals my soul

Barnes & Noble heals my soul

Ella Jiang, News Editor February 16, 2024

I promised myself that I was only here to pick up one thing: a graphic novel that was going to be a birthday gift for my friend. It was a simple task really — I had the title, it was easily recognizable,...

FFArt

[Photo] Painting Past the Shadow

Abby Siu, Managing Editor February 16, 2024

Students pocket their phones in English teacher Jeffrey Wenger’s class, Feb. 13. Many teachers have been implementing this system to get students off their phones during class.

[Photo] Teachers use phone pockets to help students focus

Juliana Hong and Zeina Nicolas February 16, 2024

Students pocket their phones in English teacher Jeffrey Wenger’s class, Feb. 13. Many teachers have been implementing this system to get students off their phones during class.

Graphic by Ella Jiang and Phoebe Vo
Artwork courtesy of Nikolas Pautov

Game Design club creates “Scalien Showdown”

Ella Jiang, News Editor January 26, 2024

For all 30 days of November, Westview Game Design club focused its efforts on one task — designing, programming, and scoring music for a game. Among the other 631 participants in the 2023 Github Game...

Family trips bring me joy

Family trips bring me joy

Ella Jiang, News Editor January 26, 2024

I have a recurring nightmare and it goes like this: I am in a foreign country with my family — we are lost, we are tired, and we are not agreeing on anything. The taxi we called for is 20-something minutes...

Xmas Express

Xmas Express

Ella Jiang, News Editor December 22, 2023

Since 1999, Lisa and Dave Melahn have had a train-chugging wonderland laid out in their front yard—a beloved gem of Christmas Card Lane. Every night of December, the Ellingham home attracts a crowd,...

Arborist Kurt Peacock of Tree San Diego points out the different areas that trees could be planted around Westview, Dec. 5. Tree San Diego plans on bringing 10-12 new trees to the schools quad.

[Photo] Trees@WV to introduce more plant life to campus landscape

Abby Siu, Managing Editor December 22, 2023

Arborist Kurt Peacock of Tree San Diego points out the different areas that trees could be planted around Westview, Dec. 5. Tree San Diego plans on bringing 10-12 new trees to the school's quad.

Girls tennis competes in CIFs

Ella Jiang, News Editor November 17, 2023

Before stepping onto the court for the first feed-in match of CIFs, Nov. 1-2, Noelle Dang (11) made sure her ponytail was secure with each hair tie—three to be exact. Her racket fashioned a brand new...

Educators from Korea visit Westview, learn about student culture

Ella Jiang, News Editor November 17, 2023

Touring classroom to classroom, 20 Korean educators from Korean National University of Education visited Westview, Nov. 7, as a part of professional development at the Korean National University of Education...

Adrian Welton (12) pushes through one of the hills of the final leg of the Mt. SAC course, Oct. 21. He placed 11th with a time of 15:15.

Arciaga, Welton conquer Mt. SAC

Ella Jiang, News Editor October 27, 2023

At the Mt. San Antonio College (Mt. SAC) starting line, Oct. 21, Kaitlyn Arciaga (11) felt the nerves hit her all at once. Ahead of her was a known course, famous not for its length of 2.95 miles, but...

Review: The Haunted Corn Maze

Ella Jiang, News Editor October 26, 2023

It’s arrived: the season of pumpkins, of sweater weather (even in this 80-degree San Diegan heat), of pumpkin chais off the Starbucks seasonal fall menu, and possibly most excitably, of a perfectly spooky...

New California math framework sparks discourse

Ella Jiang, News Editor October 26, 2023

Statewide, math educators of all different levels, from elementary to collegiate, have spent the last four years developing and debating the revisions that should be done to the math framework for K-12...

Recent strikes benefit labor workers

Recent strikes benefit labor workers

Ella Jiang, News Editor October 6, 2023

Indefinite periods of little-to-no pay, risking permanent job loss, undergoing socio-economic stress, losing profit, disrupting the economy—as President Biden said in a statement on Sept. 16 supporting...

Review: Fionna and Cake

Ella Jiang, News Editor October 6, 2023

Often proclaimed as one of the best cartoon series of all time, Adventure Time is the timeless kind of kid’s show that embodies the epitome of child-like wonder, leaving its spin-off, Fionna and Cake,...

Thoughts and Thumbs: Heartstopper Season 2

Ella Jiang, News Editor September 15, 2023

Wrapped into eight steadily-paced episodes, Heartstopper season two is a four-and-a-half hour long rollercoaster of laughs and tears, accompanied by a beautifully-curated soundtrack and, best of all, a...

Chen, Fang teach kids programming

Ella Jiang, News Editor August 25, 2023

  While the earliest days of last summer transitioned many busy school lives to a period of rest and relaxation, Allan Fang (11) and Trevor Chen (11) were restless. Project Binary Coding, the non-profit...

Youssef recognized on PBS NewsHour

Ella Jiang, News Editor August 25, 2023

As one of the 28 students accepted into the Student Reporting Labs (SRL) Academy nationwide, June 21-29, Sarah Youssef (11) hadn’t expected the story she worked on at the program to end up on national...

FF Issue 1 Art Snip

[Photo] Growing Post-Adversity

Robbie Gray, Staff Writer August 25, 2023

PUSD effort to combat chronic absenteeism brings improvement

Ella Jiang, News Editor June 2, 2023

Since the return of in-person schooling in a post-COVID era, chronic absences have risen dramatically in Poway Unified School District (PUSD), more than doubling to a rate 15.69% for the student body in...

WVCG performs their Winter Guard show Beginners Guide To Time Travel at the WGASC Championships preliminaries, April 22, held at Marina High School. They won first in their Scholastic AA division.

Winter Guard makes medaling history

Ella Jiang, News Editor May 5, 2023

Winter Guard took to the floor unshaken. Despite the unfamiliar setting, every step-turn and flag toss of their “Beginner’s Guide to Time Travel” show were locked in by muscle memory. Hours upon...

Dance Troupe members performs a contemporary piece in the Medium Group division at USA Dance Nationals, March 18. They danced to Dont Let Me Go by RAIGN, a song about missing a past lover, utilizing storytelling and emotion.

Dance Troupe performs at USA Dance Nationals

Ella Jiang, News Editor April 7, 2023

The bright beam of the spotlights was unforgiving in the arena of the Anaheim Convention Center, marking the dancers’ shadows into the slick wood of the stage—a stage bigger than any they’d ever...

Streaming services are ruining serialized TV shows

Ella Jiang, News Editor April 6, 2023

When I find myself deep into a Netflix doom-scroll after finishing a show (which I watched for hours without interruption), I am struck with lament; I am just as bored as I was before. Entertainment,...

Dance Troupe performs at USA Dance Nationals

Ella Jiang, News Editor April 6, 2023

The bright beam of the spotlights was unforgiving in the arena of the Anaheim Convention Center, marking the dancers’ shadows into the slick wood of the stage—a stage bigger than any they’d ever...

Everly competes in equestrian sports

Everly competes in equestrian sports

Ella Jiang, News Editor March 17, 2023

Heavy rain and canceling guests would have sullied anyone’s birthday — but Maile Everly (12) was anything but sad. As she sat in a stable, surrounded by the ponies her parents had rented, she found,...

Catalysts4Success visits Deer Canyon

Ella Jiang, News Editor February 10, 2023

After Sean Boerhout (12) dropped a piece of Alka Seltzer into the mixture, Deer Canyon Elementary School’s fourth-grade students watched in awe as a make-shift lava lamp made of water dyed red and vegetable...

Ethnic Studies students make ecobricks, clean campus

Ethnic Studies students make ecobricks, clean campus

Ella Jiang, News Editor January 27, 2023

As lunch came to an end and 20 minutes of SSH began, Aadya Nayak (12), Marissa Kanoya (11), and the rest of their project group went around campus amassing an abundance of plastic trash, discarded...

Jaden Nisperos (11), Autumn Kelly (11), and Mina Hurt (11) perform a comedic bit at GOLDs Winter show, Dec. 13. They entertain the audience while giving stage crew time to set up behind the curtain for the next performance.

Behind-the-scenes look at GOLD’s annual Winter show

Ella Jiang, News Editor December 16, 2022

While the audience only saw the program’s performance onstage, what kept it running was the show backstage. Band Director Mitchell Way and Associate Band Director Martin Fierro said the success of...

Art by Phoebe Vo

Listen in the moment

Ella Jiang, News Editor November 18, 2022

  On April 26, 2022, I was sure of one thing and one thing only; I was going to have the time of my life that night and nothing was going to get in my way. It was my first ever concert and...

Retention election for California’s District Four Court of Appeals Justices, voters left uninformed

Ella Jiang, News Editor November 1, 2022

Of California’s District Four Court of Appeals Justices, almost a fourth of judges across all three divisions have expiring terms and are up for retention. However, once it’s time for voters to check...

Environmental Clubs climate strike, future projects on campus

Environmental Club’s climate strike, future projects on campus

Ella Jiang, News Editor October 14, 2022

Bella Santos (12) and Grace Mordhorst (12), presidents of Advocates for a Better Environment (ABE) club, called out to the students around them with posters in hand to promote petitions that aimed...

Boys beach volleyball adjusts to new team dynamics, prepares for coming season

Ella Jiang, News Editor September 16, 2022

After many key players in the boys beach volleyball program graduated last year, returning players Xavier O’Boyle (11) and Donovan Weber (11) said they are excited to see how the new team performs this...

Costa Rica Crew

Costa Rica Crew

Ella Jiang, News Editor August 26, 2022

Zoey Lestyk (10) slowed to catch her breath in the pitch darkness. Determined and on the search for sea turtle nests, she quickened her pace to return to the rest of the patrol, as they combed through...

Oversharing on social media

Ella Jiang, News Editor May 6, 2022

We live in a time where the digital reality can feel more comfortable than our real one. Every day, I am overwhelmed with a conveyor belt of posts and videos on my Instagram feed or my TikTok for-you page,...

Art by Ella Jiang.

[Photo] Using Humor to Cope

May 6, 2022

Art by Ella Jiang.

Middle aged TV show writers attempt to relate to teens, fail miserably

Ella Jiang, News Editor April 8, 2022

As an enjoyer of TV shows, I spend more time searching than watching. Often, during my fruitless, hour-long expeditions on Netflix, I find myself seeing a trend within the dialogue of shows categorized...

Students, staff adapt to mask mandate removal

Ella Jiang, News Editor March 18, 2022

Nearly two years after the pandemic sent PUSD students home, the mask mandate was lifted in California, March 12. According to a Coronavirus map and case count graph from The New York Times, California...

Self-care glamorization is materialistic, prioritizes companies over consumers

Ella Jiang, News Editor February 18, 2022

  There’s nothing more relaxing than taking a hot bath and doing some much needed skincare after a stressful day. Scents of lavender, the fizzing of a bath bomb, skin-burning mud masks—it truly...

[Photo] The Absurdity of Groundhog Day

Mason Williams, Staff Writer February 18, 2022

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