By Suzen Richardson – 10th Grade, Propel Braddock Hills High School Thanksgiving is just one of the many Holidays that my family celebrates  at one of our grandparents' houses.  We bring homemade food, stories, and our families. Read more [...]

By Mirjana Hutnik – 9th Grade, Peters Township High School Thanksgiving is my absolute favorite holiday.  The thought of the whole family sitting around the table with plates of steaming food at the center just waiting to be cut into is really comforting.  On a day where we celebrate and give thanks for everything and everyone we have in our lives, it is extremely important to have all those people with us. Read more [...]

 By Mirjana Hutnik – 9th Grade, Peters Township High School In today’s world, at the click of a button everyone can be in instant contact with each other. Most people only focus on the negatives of social media but there are benefits also. Read more [...]

By Mirjana Hutnik – 9th Grade, Peters Township High School Last Thursday, a very special screening premiered at Soldiers and Sailors Hall in Oakland.  An organization called Seeds of Hope created the documentary, Our Way Home, to show veterans who are struggling with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder they are not alone and that the community is here to help them heal. Read more [...]

By Stephanie Wang – 11th Grade, Peters Township High School Chances are, if you're a teenager, you have at least one social media account.  I know that I myself have a fair share of social media accounts.  Social media has become a dominating force in our social structure-- we need likes for self-validation and retweets to feel relatable. Read more [...]

By Maura Sheedy – 12th Grade, Oakland Catholic High School On twitter, I try to be the funny person I’m not, but it usually backfires I tried vsco for a while, but I think I went overboard with filters and fake candids. I catch up with my extended family on Facebook more than real life I reblog things on tumblr with sole hopes of being reblogged Read more [...]

By Serena Zets – 10th Grade, Pittsburgh CAPA My mother was teased for her bindi. Her lunches of curry and rice were scoffed at. She was shamed for accepting outdated hand-me-downs from the neighbor girl. Read more [...]

By Mirjana Hutnik – 9th Grade, Peters Township High School I think that cultural and ethnic values and understandings are very important. My family very strongly believes in preserving our culture and heritage. We do things differently than most people due to our ethnic roots and traditions. Most people think it’s strange and unusual but to us it is normal because of what we were taught and believe. Others do not need to believe in it or understand it, they just need to respect it. Read more [...]

By Maura Sheedy – 12th Grade, Oakland Catholic High School By far, the most rewarding experience I’ve had was my decision to spend a year without makeup.  Like most teenagers, looks are a huge part of my life, whether or not I’d like to admit it.  One afternoon at the beginning of my junior year during a conversation with my friends about our makeup, outfits, and hair for later that night, I couldn’t help but thinking how much time, energy, and money is devoted to looking “perfect”. Then the idea hit me. “Guys what if I went an entire year without makeup?” Read more [...]

By Serena Zets – 10th Grade, Pittsburgh CAPA This past summer completely changed how I view the world, thanks to my involvement in a program called GirlGov.  GirlGov is a program in Western PA that helps teen girls get more involved in politics and work together to make a change. Read more [...]