Sofia Ball, Copy Editor
Hello, my name’s Sofia Ball and I write for the Northwest Passage. This will mark my third consecutive year on staff and I am so grateful for the opportunity to report on sensitive topics, student life, and local conflicts. My goal as a student journalist is always to recover the truth, simplify complex issues and make people care. I also love running, reading and movies. My top three watches are Sing Street, Waves and Night Crawler. If there’s ever a problem or feel-good story that you want to share, please reach out to us. You can always find me in room 151. Here’s to another great year!
![Junior Venti Neaderhiser and senior Dylan Paflas work on their robot March 21 in Room C. The robotics team worked on their robot, Fred, to prepare for the FRC Worlds competition. “I was working with the bumpers on our robot that protect [the] frame [for] when we hit or bump into something,” Neaderhiseri said. “We have put a lot of work into building and coding the robot and have run into many difficulties but we have overcome every issue.” photo by Jack Pischke](https://smnw.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/JPischkeRoboticsteam-7-1-1200x795.jpg)
![Smiling, senior Courtney Allison watches her students Oct. 25 at Nieman Elementary. Allison has been coaching cheer for 2 years and teaches grades 6-8th. “[Moments I live for] are when I make a correction and I can see the students that are taking a correction and using it to get better and not immediately shutting down,” Allison said. “I feel like I'm more of a peer role model because I'm somebody closer to their age who maybe they could relate to a little more.” Photo By Haylee Bell](https://smnw.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Hbell_courtneyscolumn10.25-02.CMYK_-1200x801.jpg)
![Smiling, senior Courtney Allison watches her students Oct. 25 at Nieman Elementary. Allison has been coaching cheer for 2 years and teaches grades 6-8th. “[Moments I live for] are when I make a correction and I can see the students that are taking a correction and using it to get better and not immediately shutting down,” Allison said. “I feel like I'm more of a peer role model because I'm somebody closer to their age who maybe they could relate to a little more.”](https://smnw.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Screenshot-2023-11-09-at-10.22.49-AM-1200x800.png)
![Speaking in front of students, senior Rha’ki Walker talks about the upcoming Black Student Union (BSU) assembly Jan. 19 in Room 130. Walker is one of the co-presidents for the BSU. “[BSU] is the first club I’ve ever run,” Walker said. “It’s really fun to lead because everyone there has a fun and positive attitude.”](https://smnw.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/ksimpson_bsu.1.19.1-2-e1675800651678-900x885.jpg)
![Senior Tanner Pruter plays the tenor drum Aug. 31 in Main Gym. The Marching Cougar Pride performed their “Chaos Order” show during the Bonfire Assembly. "[During the performance] the band is split between chaos and order,” Pruter said. “The beginning of the show starts out with chaos and throughout the show, you get little glimpses of order.”](https://smnw.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/ejohnson_bonfire_8.31_32-1-900x600.jpg)
![At freshmen mixer, senior Elinor Engel dances with senior Jill Blocker Aug. 12 on the Northwest track. StuCo and Link Crew ran the event together to start the freshmen off to a good school year. “We had very good attendance and got a large amount of freshmen involved and dancing,” Engel said. “I think a lot of [freshmen] had fun.”](https://smnw.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/DSC_2121-900x600.jpg)