The boys tennis team won states for the third time in a row after beating Deep Run High School in Newport News, Va. After completing the regular season with a perfect record of 17-0, the Jefferson boys tennis team finished the year with cinching the states win for the third year in a row. On June 13, the team won finals against Deep Run High School at Huntington Park in Newport News, Va., beating the school by 5-2.

As students gear up for the upcoming All Night Graduation Party (ANGP), held after the graduation on June 20, many were surprised to discover that phones are not allowed. Although it was common knowledge that phones would be confiscated at the ceremony, seniors were disappointed to learn that they wouldn’t be able to take their own photos and contact other people during the event.

As active members of Jefferson’s Public Forum (PF) debate team, juniors Kiran Girish and Sahana Ramani brought home outstanding achievements for the team this season, continuing their successes since freshmen year. As one of the leading pairs of the team, Girish and Ramani concluded their 2014-2015 season as Virginia High School League (VHSL) champions and double octafinalists for the National Catholic Forensic League (NCFL) Grand National Speech & Debate Tournament, which was held on May 23-24 in Florida.

On June 9, Jefferson held its annual Thomas Jefferson Symposium to Advance Research (tjSTAR), in which seniors and freshmen presented their year-long tech labs, mentorship and Integrated Biology, English and Technology (IBET) research projects. Professionals in science, engineering, technology and mathematics (STEM) fields gave interactive presentations and hosted discussions and panels, providing a glimpse into the future of STEM and offering advice.

Every lunch periods, students can be seen lining up at the two food trucks outside of the school. As hearty school lunch consumers, we have tried many of the different options offered and give our personal favorites that we’ve enjoyed throughout the year. Commonly packaged in paper Chinese take-out containers, the food truck’s chicken bowls complemented with either brown rice or noodles are a popular choice among students.

Senior Hannah Gaudet teachers a small group of students for Students for Educational Equity (SEE) at Walt Whitman Middle School. Following the death of Freddie Gray, a resident of Baltimore, Md., angry citizens, many high school students, shattered their neighborhoods. They pelted stones at the police force, plundered local convenient stores, demolished police cars, ignited fires and ultimately caused a state of emergency in Maryland.