Ally JohnPress, Editor-in-Chief
Ally JohnPress is a third-year reporter, marking her senior year as Editor-in-Chief. She is also President of the National English Honor Society and the Quill & Scroll Honor Society. She trains Krav Maga, self-defense, out of school, as well as works as an assistant instructor. Some of her favorite things include: Mint chocolate chip ice cream, walking her dog, Haylie, watermelon Sour Patch Kids, playing Minecraft, jetskiing, learning about psychology and bracelet-making. She enjoys writing about conspiracy theories as well as fiction stories in her free time, but also features about ongoing school events. She wants to go out of state to California to study psychology or adventure somewhere far across the world.
![After placing second in their respective LDEs at the Capital District contest in early November, freshman Jesus Jaramillo-Gallegos and freshman Wyatt Pickett will compete at the Area XII LDE contest in Georgetown on Nov. 23. Jaramillo-Gallegos is competing in Greenhand Spanish Creed Speaking, while Pickett’s LDE is Greenhand Creed Speaking. “Honestly, [I’m excited for] just traveling around, maybe meeting more people,” Jaramillo-Gallegos said. “And [I’m] nervous about probably just not being able to define my weak areas. I feel like I did decent for my first time ever doing this. I just think it’s fun.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Navy-and-Yellow-Simple-Group-Project-Presentation-1200x675.png)
![Holding up T-wolves, the tour group poses for a picture in the Chinese classroom. Sophomore Lydia Ou, junior Phu Trung and senior Yushan Pan gave a tour to Taiwanese diplomat Andrea Yang on Nov. 8. “I was so excited when I heard I would get to give the tour because it’s a big deal,” Ou said. “She’s from the US embassy for Taiwan, so she’s really important. I’m so privileged [to get this opportunity] and I’m so excited.” Photo by Skyler King](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Main-Taiwan.jpg)
![Sitting at a desk past the rows of books laid out for the Book Fair, senior Kimberley Walters assists people in purchasing books and finding titles. The Book Fair is taking place Dec. 16 through Dec. 20, and is an annual event during which students and faculty have the opportunity to go and purchase books and other trinkets in the library. Kimberley said she encourages all to go to the Book Fair, even if they think they don’t like to read. “If you make reading something that is fun for you and you find the things that you like to read, it will never be a chore,” Walters said. “So [the Book Fair is] a good opportunity to find something that will respark your want to read [like] when you were a child and you went to the book fair and you loved the ‘I survived’ books. Maybe you'll find your ‘I survived’ books of your high school experience, and it'll re-spark that kind of love for reading that may have died out.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Addie-L-47-1200x800.jpg)
![Smiling at the camera, sophomore Olivia Mahlmeister and seniors Samantha Jameson, Adhit Eswaramoorthi and Justin Khadavi celebrate completing first chamber in the Congress Meet. All four students advanced to the final chamber. “Out of the 20 kids in the final chamber, we had a seventh, ninth, 11th and 13th, and they took the top four to move on to state,” AP US History and Debate teacher Josh Marsh said. “[Even though] we didn't make state this year, all four of them moving on [and] placing is phenomenal.” Photo courtesy of Josh Marsh](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/2024-Regional-Congress-Team.jpg)
![Standing in front of a small audience, senior Kimberley Walters shares a social criticism poem titled “Pity the Nation” by Lawrence Felinghetti. Every month, sponsored by the poetry club, the library hosts a poetry reading. “I never thought I would be interested in [poetry readings] because I’m not the biggest poetry fan,” Walters said. “I think poetry is a very succinct way to express feelings and get a story across. Whereas lots of books have a span of a whole story, but it’s put in a lot of words. The power of poetry is that you can be so succinct within, and there’s a lot of power within the words that are used.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KIM-1200x800.jpg)
![Smiling at the camera, Author Ehigbor Okosun, members of Page Turners, and other students reflect on the author's visit. “I thought the visit was great,” Senior Amia De Leon said. “It was interesting talking to her and [getting to know] her process and her thoughts and books in general. But I think the reason it went well [was that] people got to ask questions. I'm glad that she said so much in response to the questions and it wasn't just one and done. [The author’s responses] felt very articulate.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Sebastian-5-1200x800.jpg)
![Holding the Grand Nationals trophies, drum majors Helashi Wijayawardhana, Abigail Pettey and Eddy Kim pose for a photo. The BOA Grand Nationals competition took place in Indianapolis on Nov. 14-17. “My favorite thing was just looking back at the field, and I was like, ‘Oh, crap. I know all of their names, I know who all of them are’,” Wijayawardahana said. “It's just insane to me that I was able to make so many connections. [Being a drum major] taught me how to build relationships with people who I’m not really that similar to, and how to juggle a ton of things all together.”
Photo courtesy of CPHS Band SmugMug](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/AJC.GrandNatsFinals-169-1200x801.jpg)
![Delicately placing the string to form the shape of a cornucopia, seniors Haley Burton and Avery Nelson create the November arrangement for the Flower of the Month Club. This club is led by Advanced Floral Design Students and provides a monthly arrangement to community members who subscribe to receive them. “I think flower of the month club is a really impactful way to show your loved ones ‘hey I really care about you,’ or even if they’re just for yourself, they’re a little pick-me-up throughout the month that [say] ‘I’m doing ok, and these flowers make my day a little bit brighter,” Nelson said. “I like giving people flowers because people value the flowers more and they value themselves more.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Ava-Holmes-3-edit.jpg)
![Standing in front of the field at a freshman football game, cheerleader freshman Jacob Gaudreau along with teammate freshman Bella Gibson pose for a photo during halftime of game. “[Cheer has] definitely given me a much more outgoing personality,” Gaudreau said. “I used to be very introverted, so it's definitely made me more extroverted towards people.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Ingrid-204-1200x800.jpg)
![Holding a wooden pizza toy, senior Taylor Peterson plays with small children in Bucaramanga, Colombia. During the summer, Peterson traveled to Colombia to help build an elementary school that only had two classrooms but five or six grades with one teacher. “We add[ed] two more classrooms,” Peterson said. “It’s kind of hard when you have two or three grades in one classroom and you only have one teacher. It’s very hard to actually get some beneficial learning. [The extra classrooms will give the students] a better quality of education because they’ll actually have a place specific for their learning.” Photo by Taylor Peterson](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Taylor-P.png)
![Sucking in a breath of air, freshman Lily Pope competes in the 200 yard individual medley. On Oct. 25, the swim team competed in the AISD Swim Invitational. Overall, the girls team took second place and the boys team came in eleventh. “My favorite stroke is butterfly because I do the best in that stroke,” Pope said. “I feel like [butterfly] can test how [your ability] to convince yourself to keep going. The hardest part of swimming is convincing yourself to stay strong and keep pushing during a hard race [when] everything is tired.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/POPE-1200x804.jpg)
![Swinging with his arm extended, senior Nolan Park hits the ball smoothly over the net and to the opponent’s side. Park is one of four varsity tennis captains and helped the team win district championships. “Winning district champs was a pretty awesome feeling,” Park said. “We had lost to Liberty Hill a couple of weeks before, but when we played them [again], we came out and really took care of business. We took them out and it was just a really awesome night.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Kassidy-419.jpg)
![Playing his saxophone, senior Jacob Cohen performs at one of the outdoor pep rallies. Cohen, who has been playing the saxophone since middle school, was named co-grand champion for Cedar Park’s soloist competition this year. Although he will not be majoring in music at University of Texas at Austin, he said he still wants to pursue it. “I want to continue playing the saxophone because it’s always been a passion of mine,” Cohen said. “I’m excited to meet new people in the band world, [make] new relationships and [get] involved in the college band experience.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/IMG_7596.jpg)
![From left to right sit freshmen Gabrielle Merrill, Cara Allen, Erica Mihealsick and Mina Danesh, or the "Madams of Mayhem." On March 25, the team competed at the State competition at University of Texas at Arlington and placed seventh in their Improvisational Challenge. “Destination Imagination is a creative group meant for people who like to do creative things,” Danesh said. “I fully intend on doing this throughout my entire high school career. I really like the aspect that there aren’t necessarily logical boundaries to [improv], and I think that’s pretty cool. I think we all really truly enjoy doing this with people we are super close to and doing activities we love to do and things that genuinely interest us.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/editedselfie.jpg)
![Holding up their T-Wolf signs, volleyball girls and Wolves for Wishes ambassador, senior Ana-Kate Partridge, pose for a picture at the volleyball bake sale on Oct. 19. This was the club's first fundraiser, and they raised a total of $1,750 for the Make A Wish Foundation. "I was shocked at how much money [we] raised from the bake sale," Partridge said. "Just knowing that we raised that much money and that [the team] was willing to do this made me really excited, and I was so grateful that all these people [donated]."](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IMG_4369.jpg)
![Just before starting her culinary competition, Cupcake Battle, senior Lexi Paull poses with her fellow cooks at Regionals in Corpus Christi on Jan. 29. Paull competed against one other person and won with her spice cupcakes and cherry tree display. “[Before the competition] I was stressed,” Paull said. “I felt like I had to get first place since I only went up against one other person. My heart was beating so fast my Apple Watch notified me saying that my heart rate was abnormal and that it was concerned for me. But, I also felt confident. I had an amazing, flavorful cupcake with a good design, but I definitely could’ve done better, and I will make sure to do that for State.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/culinary-ally.jpg)
![Preparing to hit the incoming ball, sophomore Mary Lawler looks forward on Feb. 6. As Lawler prepares for another season, she said she hopes the team is able to play their whole season with minimal interruptions. "I'm looking most forward to the games this season since last year's were canceled by [COVID-19]," Lawler said. "I like the individuality of the sport and how I can put my focus into one position."](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/IMG_1638-900x600.jpg)
![From behind the scenes, senior Pack Chat host Ella Neel and senior executive producer Claire Mallet, prepare for the start of the Pack Chat on Sept. 30. The Pack Chat is a student run segment with various hosts who speak about trending events and prevalent topics in the news today. "I think that my favorite part [about the Pack Chat] is hearing other people’s opinions," Mallet said. "I think a lot of times people think their own way and are set in that way of thinking. Just being able to hear what everyone thinks, it lets you understand what other people are thinking.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/packchat-copy.jpg)
![Demonstrating the start of a front choke defense, owner of The Mat and instructor Alec Rains teaches a defensive options class. This class is all about the fundamentals of Krav Maga, or self-defense, and is a great opportunity to begin learning specialized techniques and training the mind. “[Self-defense is] the foundations of what we call “life skills” that build character and good habits for living,” Rains said. “[These] life skills develop into awareness of the self and those around us. Having knowledge in protecting yourself physically plays a part [in training self-defense], but the actual reality of needing any physical skills to the degree we practice is nearly 100% avoidable.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/alecpic-1-900x600.jpg)
![Kicking the ball downfield, varsity midfielder, junior Quinn Brooke plays in a match against Glenn on Jan. 28. The team is currently undefeated in districts and is continuing to set goals and practice hard to continue winning. "Being undefeated is something that has been a huge goal for all of us on the team and is something we strive for in every game, no matter the opponent," Brooke said. "We interpret undefeated as a reward for all the hard work that we put [forward], [and] it just gives us fuel and keeps our spirits up for the next game. If you set your mind to it, being undefeated is such an obtainable goal, and that goes for any sport team."](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/newsoccerpic-900x600.jpg)
![Jumping for joy, junior Kaitlin Davis and the volleyball team celebrate scoring a point at the game against Rouse on Sept. 27. Wins like these are what propelled the team to Regional Semifinals. "The feeling was unreal," senior Olivia Meyers said. "After all the work we put in during off season and in season finally [paid] off. Everyone was just all coming together and playing for each other and it was one of the most unforgettable moments of my life."](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/volleyball-thing-900x600.jpg)
![Resting her head on her hand, Aleksae Watson experiments with different poses during her photo shoot. Watson has been interested in modeling since the age of 11, and works for the Neal Hamil Agency. "I went for [modeling] and it’s been one of the best decisions I’ve made,” Watson said. “I forget about everything and enjoy the moment, have the most fun, and am able to express myself."](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Aleksae-model-pic-900x575.jpg)
![During rehearsals, the cast of "Tony and Tina's Wedding" stands on stage. The interactive play will take place Saturday and Sunday at 7 p.m. in the CPHS school cafeteria.
“There’s dancing, there’s food, you can mingle, [and] the play continues, so the crazy things that happen, happen around you and sometimes include you,” theater director Alisa Mirabella said. “So it’s totally interactive. A lot of it has to be improv, there’s a very loose script, [but] they [do] have to include certain things because the audience is there, [but] really anything could happen in addition to the fiascos of the script.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/8A5CB2D6-MAYBE201A-467B-A3D7-AD995DAEA17B-1.jpg)
