The student news site of Portola High School

Portola Pilot
The student news site of Portola High School

Portola Pilot
The student news site of Portola High School

Portola Pilot
Youth are often not held completely responsible for their crimes, especially first degree felonies like homicide and sexual offenses. The number of juveniles receiving a life sentence without parole dropped 6% even though the number of serious youth crimes increased by 13% within the past five years, according to New York Times.

Setting a Standard: Trying Juveniles for First-Degree Assaults

Dheeksha Bhima Reddy and Arnav Chandan | December 6, 2021

Children are often taught from an early age that actions have consequences, yet our current justice system fails to establish this principle. By treating violent juvenile offenders with disproportionate...

15. Coat the top of your cake with the cake crumbles. You can also decorate your cake with any leftover whipping cream you might have. Enjoy your sweet potato cake!

A Korean Sweet Potato Cake Recipe to Spice up Your Fall

Celine Lee, Co-News Editor | December 1, 2021

Korean sweet potato cake, or “Goguma cake” in Korean, is a layered cake with sweet potato filling and whipped cream. In contrast with American sweet potato cakes, Korean sweet potato cakes are...

Tustin High School juniors and seniors who have prior Model United Nations experience judge the delegates based on the quality of their position paper, debate and overall participation.

Portola’s MUN Club Enters their first MUN Conference after COVID-19

Arshia Sista, Staff Writer | November 30, 2021

Model United Nations won seven awards, from research to commendation (six novice and one advanced), at the 29th annual Tustin High MUN Conference on Nov. 20-21. Model United Nations participated in...

The proposed map for the California Senate district splits Irvine between its northern and southern regions. This redistricting drawing plan is one of the most drastic of the proposed changes to the California Assembly and the federal Senate.

Irvine Faces Redistricting as 2020 Census Data Nears

Michelle Kim, Business Manager | November 29, 2021

Orange County residents face redistricting, the decennial redrawing of federal and state Congressional Districts to reflect California’s population, following the 2020 Census and as the 2022 midterm...

Following the performances, C.O.D.E. guitarist and senior Desmond Wong accepts the Best Set award for his group from instrumental music teacher Kyle Traska. Engineering teacher Anthony Pham designed and created the trophies, according to Traska.

Striking a Chord: Battle of Rock Bands Nails Audience Engagement

Justin Tang and Martin Yoon | November 23, 2021

Writer’s note: The Battle of Rock Bands is unrelated to the High School Youth Action Team’s Battle of the Bands, which last took place in 2018. You can read more about it here. With great power...

Senior Thivinya Kobbekaduwa holds up a Sri Lankan flag. Kobbekaduwa was born in Sri Lanka and was inspired to give back to her home city of Kobbekaduwa after hearing news of underfunded schools in Sri Lanka from her aunt.

Thivinya Kobbekaduwa Helps Underprivileged Sri Lankans Skim Through a New Chapter of Education

Kayleen Kim, Staff Writer | November 22, 2021

Piles of books and plastic grocery bags are scattered on the floor around senior Thivinya Kobbekaduwa. She carefully sorts each title into boxes, preparing to send every shipment to underprivileged communities...

Junior Emma Song, junior Citlali Garcia-Montero, sophomore Jadyn Kohan, and junior Xasive Espinosa practice offense and defense during a two-on-two drill during practice on Nov. 9. In addition to sport-specific technique, winter sports athletes also condition through regular fitness exercises and work to lower injury risks by warming up before practice or play, according to assistant athletics director Brian Smith.

Enthusiasm, Bonding, and Plenty of Practice Come Together As Winter Sports Prepare for Season Ahead

Justin Tang, Back Page Editor | November 18, 2021

Winter sports are preparing to leap into league competition as the fall season draws to a close. While boys’ basketball had its first preseason scrimmage game on Nov. 9 against Troy High, the preseason...

Moderate Democrats have feuded with Progressives over the size and provisions of Biden’s Build Back Better plan. Even if some provisions are removed, the bill will still be beneficial and necessary to tackle climate change.

Despite Opposition, Biden’s Newly-Passed Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill Includes Important Measures For Climate Change

Aadi Mehta, Staff Writer | November 18, 2021

President Joe Biden’s scaled-down climate change portion of his infrastructure spending bill passed the House of Representatives on Nov. 5 in a bipartisan effort. The original bill passed the Senate...

Taylor Swift Finally Gets to ‘Begin Again’ in ‘Red’ Re-Recording

Taylor Swift Finally Gets to ‘Begin Again’ in ‘Red’ Re-Recording

Tara Vatandoust, Staff Writer | November 18, 2021

Nine years ago, in the chilly October air of 2012, singer-songwriter Taylor Swift released her fourth album, “Red,” to waves of critical acclaim and commercial success. Giving the then-22-year-old...

The installation “Together, but Apart” was the start of seniors Elyse Dudley’s and Mia Zappala’s artistic partnership. Seniors Kate Brooks, Julie Epps and Clara Ferreira Lopes stand inside the completed project to literally see the world through a different colored lens.

A Friendship Full of He(art): Seniors Elyse Dudley and Mia Zappala Strengthen their Bond Through Art

Zara Shirwany, Staff Writer | November 17, 2021

On any given day, if you walk into Kearci Moir’s AP Studio Art class, you will likely see two heads -  one blue, one purple - bent over each girl’s current creative project in concentration, occasionally...

The Pride of Portola placed third overall in Division 4a with a score of 79.725. “I honestly think that the performance was, overall, the best performance I’ve ever been a part of in my whole band career; the energy and the audience’s reaction really made me proud of our show production,” assistant drum major and senior Seira Homma said. “I had to make that the best that we’ve ever done, and also, as a leader, set an example for the others to follow. It’s our last-ever performance. It was my last-ever performance. And, you know, the other students have next year and more. But it was my last performance as a senior. It’s kind of sad. I still can’t believe that it’s over.”

Pride of Portola Takes Final Bow at Last Competition of the Season

Lauren Hsu, Opinion Editor | November 16, 2021

The Pride of Portola scores third place in its Nov. 6 competition at San Clemente High with show ‘Scenes from Portola.’

An FBI spy attended meetings and prayers at the Islamic Center of Irvine to identify potential terrorists, according to ABC News. “I can still confidently walk into a mosque and still confidently pray,” Muslim Student Association co-vice president and senior Abdallah Fares said. “Knowing that in the end we can protect ourselves, whether it's through the legal system, whether simply just through our own confidence or our own pride in our religion.”

Orange County Muslim Americans Ask the Supreme Court to Allow Lawsuit Against The FBI

Sidra Asif, Staff Writer | November 16, 2021

Muslim Americans Yassir Fazaga, Ali Uddin Malik and Yasser Abdelrahim asked the Supreme Court on Nov. 8 to allow for a religious discrimination lawsuit against the FBI after members of the Islamic...

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