This photo shows a close-up of the front of Lakota West High School

Nearly three years ago, I joined the Lakota West journalism class in hopes of becoming a writer; Since I was young, I have always found myself with a pen and paper in hand. During the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, I would write mini newspapers for my...

Over the last three years of writing for The West Press, I have not hidden my frustrations with the administration of Lakota West High School. From poor traffic rules to a messy high school curriculum, I’ve done my best to shine a light on the flaws...

Throughout the last five months, I have had the pleasure of reading over 60 yearbooks, going as far back as 1939. Although I have only detailed the events from 1963 to today in my analysis, I feel as though I have an understanding of the changing trends...

Welcome to PART TWO of the Entire History of Lakota West High School! Congratulations on making it halfway through! You've read about burning dolls, parade floats, world records, and students dancing barefoot on the cold cafeteria floors... Now, we look...

On May 13th, 2025, I had the privilege of sitting down with our principal, Mr. Laman, where we discussed his first year here at Lakota West High School. We talked about a variety of subjects, ranging from his successes and goals for students to more in-depth...

Welcome to PART ONE of the Entire History of Lakota West High School! My journey through the history of both the Lakota Local School District and Lakota West High School was no simple trek; nearly 40 hours were poured into going through each individual...

[April 29th, 12:34 p.m.] An internal lockdown took place earlier today at Lakota West Freshman, lasting a little over an hour. Starting at roughly 9:50 a.m., students and staff were put in lockdown due to rumor of a possible threat made by a Lakota Central...

On March 8th, 2025, the Lakota West National Honor Society will host its annual Sadie Hawkins dance. This historic dance, which has existed since 1939, has been hosted in nearly 200 colleges around the country. Almost 90 years later, the concept of Sadie...

As students, we have a variety of opportunities to bond, unite, and support each other through a variety of clubs, activities, sports, and school events. These different school-focused opportunities are meant to raise our school spirit and make us more...

Since the days before COVID-19, the Lakota School District has been inching closer to redesigning the district in ways not seen before. This plan, entitled the Master Facilities Plan, would reshape the grade bands, introduce two new high schools, and...

Starting January 8th of 2025, Lakota West High School introduced a new set of traffic rules to “improve safety during arrival and dismissal for our students.” Even within just the first few days, however, things haven’t gone as smoothly as Lakota...

On March 17th, 2023, the world watched as Taylor Swift, the biggest artist on the planet, began “The Eras Tour” which would span 149 shows in 22 countries, generating over 2 billion dollars from the tour alone. The tour sold over 10 million tickets...

Lakota East Principal Robert Burnside announced Friday that he would be resigning amid an investigation into his assistance to a former homeless student. According to Burnside, the decision was for “personal reasons” and will go into effect on January...

Since early May, the Lakota West Marching Band has been meticulously crafting their 2024 show, “A Lakota Western,” which is heavily inspired by classic Western films, music, and fun. With dancing, cowboy hats, and a whole lot of “yee-haws” to...

Reminder: This is an opinion article. Any and all viewpoints are not reflective of The West Press or Lakota West High School as a whole. Entering the 2024 United States presidential election, the world knew it would be a tight race;  no one candidate...

Before school started on Friday, September 20th, a Lakota West student was crossing the street on her way to catch the Butler Tech bus and was hit somewhere around 6:48 am. The student pushed the button to signal the lights of the crosswalk to turn...

As the new school year starts, the teachers of Lakota Local Schools have been busy preparing lesson plans, textbooks, new schedules, and new ways to teach throughout the coming months. One part of preparing for the year includes the school administration...

The end of the school year calls for a lot to happen at Lakota West, but few expected the bombshell of an announcement Lakota’s administration dropped after the school day ended. Around 2 pm on Thursday, May 23rd, Lakota announced Mr. Ben Brown, the...

As the Class of 2024 left Lakota West High School, it felt like something was missing from their departure. As though they “went out with a whimper,” the seniors departed without a trace of their presence: no mess, toilet paper, or bustling main street....

As the end of the year approaches, many students look forward to prom, a long-standing tradition for upperclassmen (Juniors and Seniors) to celebrate their final years in high school through a night of dancing, dresses, and spending time with friends....

Since its creation, Prom has always been an event focused on giving upperclassmen (Juniors and Seniors) a way to celebrate the things they have accomplished, through a dance held at the end of the year: Prom. With a theme selected by the prom-planning...

On Monday, April 8th, millions across North America were able to experience the Great North American Eclipse 2024, with millions of sightseers traveling to the path of totality to experience the incredibly rare phenomenon. Starting its route in Texas,...

Since the 2019-2020 school year, Lakota has meticulously chipped away at the creation of their star-studded Master Facilities Plan, which has been paraded around as the district's most innovative and impactful changes since its creation. With plans to...

Over the past few years, Lakota’s School Board has been hard at work constructing the future of the district; everything from designing new buildings, changing grade setups throughout the entire district, and even adding a potential third branch of...

Over the past 6 months, football fans from around the United States have been taken aback by Taylor Swift, the global popstar who has dominated every corner of the music industry throughout the last decade, making an appearance at the Chiefs vs Bears...

Lakota West prides itself in featuring the work of students from around the school, from sharing their creations online to talking about the students’ successes during the morning announcements. Over the past 2 years, West has been witness to one of...

One of the most essential quality-of-life needs for schools is the ability to relieve oneself in a public restroom. Even if they aren’t the highest quality or most modern design ever, they get the job done and allow you to carry on with your day. Is...

Since the first day I can remember attending Lakota West, there have always been changes made throughout the year to things we are oftentimes familiar with. Whether it be the XH schedule change from last school year to this school year or the most recent...

Schools around the country have been receiving threats from a “Russian Terrorist Organization” about bombs being placed across American schools. Last Friday, the threat was emailed to many northern Texas school districts, claiming that explosives...

If you had to go on vacation to any place in the world, where would it be? Some people might say London or Tokyo; Others might say Paris or Australia. One of these places is a must-see bucket list type of place: Hawaii. Announced early 2022, The Lakota...

Lakota West has always been known for having spectacular athletics and extra-curricular activities for students. With all of their impressive wins and records held over the years, one program West offers has become a pinnacle of the school’s success:...

As the clock struck 2 p.m. on Wednesday, October 4th, hundreds of millions of phones prepared to light up and make a loud, buzzing noise. This was part of an effort required by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to be carried out with the...

In 2021, the Lakota West Marching Band made history by placing first at the Bands of America Obetz Regional, something the program had never done before. Winning a Regional this competitive is not an easy achievement and very few bands have ever had the...

Earlier this year, the Lakota School Board approved a new Master Facilities Plan that would include a price of over 500 million dollars going into destroying older schools, renovating aging schools, and creating some new schools. Among these proposed...

As the students of Lakota West return to school and prepare for another nine long months of tests, projects, and essays, it’s always good to reflect back on the previous year, and things that went well (or not). With a clean slate in front of you, there...

Taylor Swift, the pop star who has reshaped the music industry in its entirety over her 17-year career, announced earlier this year she would be going on tour again after releasing her newest album, Midnights, just a week prior. On the first day of ticket...

Back in 1997, Lakota made the decision to split the district into two different sides, Lakota East and Lakota West. As with many districts, the two were often compared, and continue to be to this day, as each side's clubs and sports clash with each other...

Congratulations, we’ve made it through the 2022-2023 school year! With exams complete and summer now in our grasp, it's always a good time to look at all the fantastic things you’ve done this year. Seniors have most likely chosen what they want to...

Earlier this month, the Lakota East and Lakota West English Departments made the decision to cut summer homework for the 2023-2024 school year. This comes after complaints were received by students and parents throughout the years, gaining enough traction...

On Friday, April 21st, Snapchat released its AI to its users for free, after previously keeping it restricted for only Snapchat+ users to use by paying for its service. The bot has an extensive list of features, from understanding complex math problems...

From the start of Kindergarten to the end of senior year, students around the world learn things like scientific properties, how to analyze famous novels and plays, calculate the mass and density of a 16-inch tall triangle, and of course, understand the...

As the Class of 2023 is preparing to leave, the requirements to graduate become more and more critical. Do you have at least two seals? Are you getting all your credits? Are your grades passing, have you paid all your school bills, did you find the right...

Over the past few years, Lakota’s School Board has been hard at work constructing the future of the district, from designing new buildings, changing grade setups throughout the entire district, and even adding a potential third branch of Lakota. Recently,...

As students prepare to enter another year of high school and go through a rigorous 9 months of lectures and projects, teachers will post their lists of classroom procedures and items they need to have in class each day. While most seem like everyday items,...

Over the past few years, The Lakota West High School Marching Band has been on the rise after winning numerous awards and growing in musical strength. They made it into Grand National Semi-Finals for the first time in 2019, are two-time, back-to-back...

People in the West Chester community have been dumping everything from car seats to toilets in recycling bins across the area. The after effects include social service employees having to work extra shifts and wasting their time, money and efforts towards...