The official student newspaper of Walter Johnson High School

The Pitch
Seniors Michelle Lett and Bella Relacion lead the MSP and BSU-led demonstrators in chants, calling out MCPS for a lack of response to recent racism incidents. Other BSUs and MSPs around the county led similar rallies.
MSP, BSU rally, raise awareness of racism in MCPS
Students attend AP African American History during fourth period. WJ has implemented programs to provide support for first-time AP test takers.
Equal Opportunity Schools, Study Circles programs improve learning landscape
Students exit WJ after school on Tuesday, Oct. 1. Exiting through the front door in the afternoon often involves waiting in a long line. “We got way too many kids here; it’s ridiculous,” freshman Veer Anand said.
WJ surpasses 3,000 students for first time
A ballot box sits just outside of the WJ school building in May, right before the 2024 primary election. Ballot boxes like this will be used by many WJ seniors this November to cast their votes for the first time.
WJ students share opinions, take action before 2024 election
Denmark students and teachers from Fredrica High School come together to pose for a photo alongside WJ administrators and student ambassadors. The photo was held in the commons after everyone enjoyed their pizza-provided lunch.
WJ welcomes Danish students
The Pinstripes building in Pike and Rose featuring its outdoor terrace. Pinstripes is in the middle of a popular outdoor shopping center close to WJ. (Courtesy Wikimedia Commons)
Prom to be held at Pinstripes
Seniors Michelle Lett and Bella Relacion lead the MSP and BSU-led demonstrators in chants, calling out MCPS for a lack of response to recent racism incidents. Other BSUs and MSPs around the county led similar rallies.
MSP, BSU rally, raise awareness of racism in MCPS
Samantha Arenberg works at a site inspection of a historic barn. They used drones to create an accurate 3D imaging of the barn to help identify areas of structural concern. “I miss certain aspects of my job. I miss being able to eat when I want, and go to the bathroom when I want, and the time flexibility. But I don’t miss being in a cubicle for nine hours a day, and feeling like I wasn’t helping people,” Arenberg siaid.
Prior jobs lead teachers to WJ
From the left: Ellie Macfarlan, Charlotte Kuperstein, Alice Frank, Olivia Crawford, Lucia Kanazir, and Daniele Perez. They all intend to attend Homecoming again this year and have fun
Students plan for Homecoming
Karen Generose reviews practice sentences with her Latin Two students. Each day Generose teaches five different levels of Latin.
Language teachers cope with packed classes
Michael Laukaitis explains a calculus concept to students during lunch. He has always made himself available for help outside of class, something many students appreciate.
Behind mathematical maestro Michael Laukaitis
(Courtesy Hildi Altman)
Homecoming: Is it best to go with a date or friends?
The VMA's is an annual Video Music Award ceremony hosted in the month of September. The award show was available for fans around the world to tune in and watch their favorite artists get the chance to receive many outstanding awards. (Wikimedia Commons)
Performance ranking of the VMA’s
Bradley plays at the Global Strings Program at Berklee College of Music. She learned about several different styles of music and got a chance to perform them live, last summer. (Courtesy Alice Bradley)
Hard work, passion talent compose student musician
Sophomores, sisters and Hadestown cast and crew members Kelsee (left) and Kylee (right) Solt-Linville never get bored of one another and can be found socializing together throughout the school.
Acting in harmony: Balancing the demands of school and theater
Leads Yuri Sternberg, Sasha Rotton and Mason Lee rehearse lines. Preparations for the play require a mix of running lines and blocking scenes.
WJ STAGE tackles “The Brothers Grimm Spectaculathon”
The woman poses for her fall photo shoot in an outfit she found inspiration for on Instagram. She wore ripped jeans, a jacket and statement sneakers, showing how the trends from the early 2010s have continued for years. (Courtesy PickPik)
Flipping through fall fashion trends
Senior Hal Fischer plays bass for his band The Haze. Fischer is excited to play with The Haze at BabyCat again once the other members return. (Courtesy Sam Deichman Caswell)
Fischer’s soundtrack: Senior finds harmony across instruments
A student's collection of college pamphlets and magazines from universities across the country. Every year, students receive pamphlets from universities that are recruiting them.
The downsides of looking at colleges too early
WJ students sit in the school's library in the morning. There are already many students, with even more coming to study for upcoming tests or relax before the school day.
Classes should be made longer for WJ students
I visited the German government in Berlin with fellow exchange students from America. Our presidential election was frequently debated and I was often asked about my political beliefs.
Looking back on my year abroad in Germany
Is PDA too public in schools?
Is PDA too public in schools?
Students begin a practice Kahoot for French class. Walter Johnson offers a total of six languages including American Sign Language, Chinese, Italian and more, giving students the opportunity to explore different languages and cultures. “I switched [from Spanish] to Latin freshman year and I love it,” junior Abigial Samuels said.
Beat the American stereotype, stick with your language class
Pitch Opinion: It's time for The Juice
Pitch Opinion: It’s time for The Juice
Wide receiver Devin Markert catches a pass deep into Whitman's 20'. WJ dominated Whitman 41-0 on a Thursday night home game. The student section watched as the play unfolded.
County-wide initiative sacks season-long Friday night football.
Snapshot of FedEx Field pregame before the Commanders' matchup versus the Chicago Bears last year on Monday night football. The stadium name is now Northwest Stadium for the 2024-2025 season and the foreseeable future.
Washington Commanders: Is there hope in D.C.?
The team poses for a photo before beginning their tour with Johnson. The Cats were given a full tour of the University of Maryland football facilities. "My favorite part of the tour was getting to meet players from the actual team. They were all so nice and we got to take pictures with them," senior Mimi Dietrich said.
Photo Gallery: Girls’ flag football visits UMD
The Change-Up: Capitals Edition
The Change-Up: Capitals Edition
The team completes a breathtaking stunt in a pyramid. The high-risk nature of Cheer is always something for the athletes to keep in mind. "Cheerleading is very, very, hard," head coach Vanessa Barnes said. It's one of the most dangerous sports. A lot of people don't know that because it's overlooked, but it is very difficult. Any minute, someone can be dropped from all the way up in the air. That's probably one of the things I would think people need to know about cheerleading."
Photo Gallery: Cheers first competetion
Cats bounce back, beat undefeated school rival
Cats bounce back, beat undefeated school rival
Students react to the upcoming presidential election
Students react to the upcoming presidential election
Seniors Michelle Lett and Bella Relacion lead the MSP and BSU-led demonstrators in chants, calling out MCPS for a lack of response to recent racism incidents. Other BSUs and MSPs around the county led similar rallies.
MSP, BSU rally, raise awareness of racism in MCPS
The team poses for a photo before beginning their tour with Johnson. The Cats were given a full tour of the University of Maryland football facilities. "My favorite part of the tour was getting to meet players from the actual team. They were all so nice and we got to take pictures with them," senior Mimi Dietrich said.
Photo Gallery: Girls’ flag football visits UMD
Healthy relationships 101
Healthy relationships 101
The Change-Up: Capitals Edition
The Change-Up: Capitals Edition
The team completes a breathtaking stunt in a pyramid. The high-risk nature of Cheer is always something for the athletes to keep in mind. "Cheerleading is very, very, hard," head coach Vanessa Barnes said. It's one of the most dangerous sports. A lot of people don't know that because it's overlooked, but it is very difficult. Any minute, someone can be dropped from all the way up in the air. That's probably one of the things I would think people need to know about cheerleading."
Photo Gallery: Cheers first competetion
The official student newspaper of Walter Johnson High School

The Pitch
The official student newspaper of Walter Johnson High School

The Pitch
Liam Barrett

Liam Barrett, Online Managing Editor

Senior Liam Barrett is delighted to serve as Online & Multimedia Managing Editor for his second year on The Pitch. Liam also does Mock Trial and Morning Announcements, and in his free time enjoys reading, not-mandatory writing, and martial arts.

All content by Liam Barrett

Becca’s Closet returns to WJ

Liam Barrett, Online Managing Editor
October 7, 2024
Senior Executive Board interns Cristina Simpson, Thailine Romero and Essil Ezzoug brainstorm their next project. As only three of the four interns were present, they had a lot to do. "A big part of this internship is time management and critical skills that you would need not only in a career but in life," Ezzoug said.

New internship puts ‘wild’ back in Wildcat

Liam Barrett, Online Managing Editor
October 4, 2024

#1: Passing the Mic

Billie Lieber and Liam Barrett
September 27, 2024
District 3 Board of Education member Julie Yang converses with WJ Principal Nicole Morgan. The two discussed many topics, including the large number of portables at WJ, and the future plans for Woodward and WJ High Schools.

Board member Julie Yang visits WJ

Seyun Park, Editor-in-Chief
September 18, 2024
Freshmen participate in the fall pep rally’s tug of war. After winning against sophomores, freshmen went on to compete against juniors. “I couldn’t believe we lost against freshmen,” sophomore Dea Krasniqi said.

Class of 2028 jumps into a new start

Sabrina Solares, Online Feature Editor
September 23, 2024
A group of seniors triumphantly celebrate their class' victory in the class tug-of-war. It is the fourth consecutive year the seniors have won the fall tug-of-war.

Photo gallery: Fall Pep Rally

Liam Barrett, Seyun Park, Meher Parsinni and Joshua Singer
September 10, 2024
Surrounded by empty desks, AP Literature teacher Melanie MacFadden prepares to read the names of graduating students at Thursday's ceremony. "Generally from year to year what I usually do [after the seniors leave] is go back through and take a look at the curriculum for AP Literature and see if I want to make any changes, so I've been working on that as well," MacFadden said.

Photo gallery: Emptiest classes after senior exodus

Liam Barrett, Online Managing Editor
June 10, 2024

The Change-Up: J1 Podcast Features

Liam Barrett, Podcast Editor
May 10, 2024
Sophomore Ronan Mailhot (Javert) yells at sophomore Benjamin Kish (Jean Valjean) during the opening performance, “Look down.” The two actors paired very well together, and their interactions throughout the show were fierce and powerful. “A couple months after rehearsal, when they were doing a run-through, literally my jaw dropped…I didn’t even realize some of my friends could sing so well,” freshman Abigail Friedlin said.

Photo gallery: WJ STAGE performs Les Misérables

Liam Barrett and Rhea Noumair
May 4, 2024
The Saturday cast of "Les Misérables" salutes the audience during the curtain call. Various core cast members from Friday appeared in Saturday's ensemble, and vice versa.

‘Les Misérables’ anything but miserable

Liam Barrett and Rhea Noumair
April 26, 2024

The Change-Up: Spring Sports Yap Session

Liam Barrett, Seyun Park and Joshua Singer
April 5, 2024
Cars whiz towards the Connecticut Avenue exit on 495 East, with speeds generally ranging anywhere from 40-80 mph.

Students share favorite driving, parking practice spots

Liam Barrett, Podcast Editor
March 21, 2024

The Change-Up: The Landon Death Lawsuit

Liam Barrett and Elli Karistinou
March 1, 2024
Studying for the SAT is often a significant source of stress for high school students, but former WJ student Alexander Lewton doesn't think Dartmouth's change to requiring standardized test scores should cause panic. "Don’t take this as a sign that like ‘oh my goodness your SAT has to be perfect',” Lewton said.

Dartmouth College eliminates test-optional policy

Liam Barrett, Podcast Editor
February 15, 2024

The Change-Up: State of the School

Liam Barrett, Podcast Editor
February 2, 2024
Pitch Picks books

Pitch Picks books

Liam Barrett and Rhea Noumair
February 2, 2024
Mock Trial

Academic All-Stars: Students shine in club competition

Elli Karistinou, Sara Elster, Abby Kee, Geetanjali Raju and Maya Panicker
February 2, 2024

The Change-Up: 1 on 1 ~ Mia Magone

Liam Barrett, Online Managing Editor
January 22, 2024

The Change-Up: 1 on 1 ~ Cody Herwald

Liam Barrett, Online Managing Editor
January 5, 2024
Many students rarely visit their counselors, forcing them to write bland, unimpressive recommendations. “Colleges aren’t interested in hearing me talk about grades, right, because they get a transcript, they know what a students grades are. So in the letter what they’re looking for is those other things; you know, what is the student involved in, how did they impact the school community,” Reynolds said.

Students should talk to their counselors more often

Liam Barrett, Podcast Editor
November 13, 2023

The Change-Up: Painted Ceiling Tiles Lore

Liam Barrett, Online Managing Editor
November 10, 2023

The Change-Up: Club Spotlight – Sports Clubs

Liam Barrett, Online Managing Editor
October 27, 2023

The Change-Up: Club spotlight – Art & Music Clubs

Liam Barrett, Podcast Editor
October 13, 2023

The Change-Up: Club Spotlight – Niche Clubs

Liam Barrett, Online Managing Editor
September 29, 2023
AP US History teacher Katherine Simmons sits at her desk, responding to emails before she starts grading the recent AP US History DBQ assignment. Although it was a lunch period, technically time for relaxation, teachers who don’t take advantage of the extra time to catch up on work are rare.

AP grader reveals realities of profession

Liam Barrett, Podcast Editor
May 24, 2023
After a long hiatus, TV morning announcements are back

After a long hiatus, TV morning announcements are back

Jona Jancewicz, Online Editor-in-Chief
February 24, 2023
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