My dad caught me vaping
October 15, 2019
Some parents don’t have a single clue about the shenanigans us vapers get up to. For the parents that don’t have a clue, get an idea. I vape regularly, and have been caught using it in action. Usually, I vape once I get home from school to sit back and relax. There’s nothing like a good ‘nic...
The case against vaping
October 15, 2019
Wilson students think vaping is harmless, but a growing body of evidence suggests vaping has dangerous mental, physical, and emotional effects. Over 800 cases of rare vaping-related lung diseases, as well as 12 deaths, have been confirmed this month by the Center for Disease Control, which also found...
Smoke Island vape shop prompts community backlash
Talya Lehrich and Madelyn Shapiro
October 15, 2019
With the vaping trend on the rise, parents and lawmakers alike want to ensure that underage users do not have access to vaping products. The opening of a new vape supply shop, Smoke Island, just blocks from Wilson, has prompted parent backlash. Wilson parent Lisa Newman noticed the shop in late August,...
Pass the Juul: Vaping rampant among students
October 15, 2019
With teen cigarette smoking in the US at an all-time low, the typical 80s movie scene where three girls are crowded in the end stall by the window smoking a cigarette is unheard of. Instead, on a visit to the third-floor girl's bathroom, you may find six pairs of feet in the handicap stall sucking f...
Students walk out for climate
Margaret Heffernan and Alex Holmes
October 11, 2019
On September 20, students and adults all over the world participated in the International Climate Strike. They walked out of class and work, and in DC, they ended up at the Capitol. The Beacon talked to Wilson students who attended the strike. They were asked about why they attended, their experience...
From Alicante to America: the Spanish roots of Victor Vela
Sophia Ibrahim and Selam Weimer
October 11, 2019
You might spot him running around the fourth floor with his bike in tow before class starts, or hanging out in the staff break room during his planning periods through a crack in the door. With his impeccable fashion sense and seemingly always perfect hair, Spanish teacher Victor Vela Martinez is hard to...
Unpopular opinions spark heated student debate
October 11, 2019
One of them is a Trump supporter. The other? An anarcho-communist. Though these aspects of their identity are quite disfavored at Wilson, neither Alex DeSouza nor Walker Price lets the unpopularity of their opinions prevent them from voicing their beliefs. “The first time in each class it’s reall...
Class contracts: Engaging students and building community
October 11, 2019
It's the first week of school and your class is tasked with creating a set of classroom norms that will drive your learning and success throughout the school year. Only given ten minutes, it’s up to one student to step up into the leadership position and start the discussion. Before deciding on the standard...
Vocal virtuoso takes talents to choir program
October 11, 2019
On the first day of school this year, Anthony Pierce asked each student in his advanced choir class to sing a snippet of a song. Many students, used to a day of course overviews and expectations, were taken aback by their new teacher’s abrupt welcome to class. But this unexpected diagnostic would set...
Dr. Moore seeks to instill environmental consciousness through mandatory recycling for students
October 11, 2019
Have you ever lingered in the Wilson halls once the school day is over and noticed the small cohort of students taking out the recycling? These students, who meticulously empty the recycling bins room by room, are part of science teacher Dani Moore’s Wilson recycling initiative. Before Moore took o...
The Clean and Green Team’s mission to curb Wilson’s waste
October 11, 2019
If you saw a cartoon telling you to pick up your trash, would you? That’s part of the goal behind Wilson’s Clean and Green Team, which seeks to keep Wilson’s halls clean and promote self-responsibility. The team was founded last year by 12th-grade Assistant Principal Gregory Bargeman and World...
From serving in Afghanistan to teaching in Brazil: meet Steven Miller
September 8, 2019
Coming back to school is a big transition for just about everybody, but it can be especially tricky if you’ve spent the past three and a half years living in Brazil. New 9th grade Assistant Principal Steven Miller has done just that, and is excited to be back in the District as a member of the Wilson administration. Miller grew u...
