The student news site of Los Altos High School in Los Altos, California

The Talon
The student news site of Los Altos High School in Los Altos, California

The Talon
The student news site of Los Altos High School in Los Altos, California

The Talon
Elyssa Kennedy

Elyssa Kennedy, Photographer

All content by Elyssa Kennedy
Behind the scenes of ASB's rank choice voting system. Talon Archives.

[Photo] How the ASB voting system works: an insight into ranked choice voting

By Sahana Srinivasan, Staff Writer
June 5, 2024
On Monday, September 18, Word for Word will perform a reading of The Great Gatsby for juniors.

[Photo] Word for Word to perform The Great Gatsby for juniors

By Oscar Johnson, News Editor
September 16, 2023
The annual Film Festival features the best films produced by this year’s Film Analysis students.

[Photo] Film Analysis showcases outstanding student films at the Film Festival

By Aimee Ge and Annabelle Lee
May 5, 2023
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[Photo] Student opinions on Los Altos High School’s new turf

By Sydney Ikegami, Journalism One
June 8, 2022
Today the school mask mandate was lifted. Here's what students have to say about it.

[Photo] Los Altos High School ranked 14th public high school in California

By Nayeon Kim and Aanya Mathias
January 26, 2022
The Los Altos football team prepares for a snap. The Eagles ultimately lost 56–35 against the Sharks of St. Francis Salesian College Preparatory, capping off their season.

[Photo] Los Altos football team reflects on season spell

By Allan Feldman, Copy Editor
November 25, 2021
COVID-19 cases have been rising throughout the District.

[Photo] Homecoming 2021 FAQs

By Emilie Enser
October 26, 2021
Now that it's fall, pumpkin spice lattes have made their return. We ranked the three big coffee companies — Starbucks, Peet’s and Dunkin’ — to help decide which latte is best for you.

Battle of the pumpkin spice lattes

By Elyssa Kennedy
September 24, 2021
Los Altos High School has installed two gender neutral bathrooms in an ongoing process to expand its gender support plan.

[Photo] An overview of gender inclusivity at LAHS

By Allison Bricca and Natalie Wei
September 15, 2021
The boys varsity water polo team played its first in-league game of the season Tuesday, September 7, against the Harker School.

Photo Essay: Boys water polo hosts Harker for first home game of the season

By Elyssa Kennedy, Photographer
September 9, 2021
Crossed-out homework assignments in News Editor Anika Sikka’s planner. Anika tried vlogging every single day for about two weeks to showcase her productivity, following a TikTok trend.

[Photo] Do you really want to be ‘that girl’?

By Anika Sikka, News Editor
August 22, 2021
Students walk to and from the 600-wing building through a single hallway between the campus pool and 500-wing buildings, and are seen packed together in the student traffic.

LAHS’s ongoing construction brings 600-wing student traffic

By Allan Feldman, Elyssa Kennedy, and Rohan Vaswani
August 16, 2021
Some LAHS and Freestyle Academy students were sent emails earlier today notifying them of a close contact exposure to COVID-19 during the first week of school.

[Photo] COVID-19 exposure at LAHS during first week of school

By Kaavya Butaney
August 14, 2021
Bill 104 allows students to make up lower grades due to the pandemic from the 2020–2021 school year.

[Photo] New bill allows students to make up pandemic grades

By Kaavya Butaney
August 1, 2021
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[Photo] District follows state guidelines, mandating masks for the upcoming school year

By Anika Sikka
July 31, 2021
During the pandemic, many members of the senior AVID class have experienced their fair share of trials from technological issues to reduced instructional time. Throughout this year, AVID classes and the District have worked to minimize the impact of the pandemic on the students' learning environment by improving virtual educational resources and reforming the AVID senior curriculum.

[Photo] AVID seniors and teachers reflect on pandemic-era academic and financial challenges

By Parisa Larson and Olivia Hewang
June 2, 2021
Protestors assemble along San Antonio Road on the anniversary of George Floyd’s death

[Photo] Protesters march on anniversary of George Floyd’s death

By Olivia Hewang
May 27, 2021
Junior Diya Gupta reaches to catch the ball ahead of a Palo Alto High School defender. The Eagles lost to Paly 17–0 but went on to win their next game against Wilcox High School 14–5.

[Photo] Three seniors, one goal — the start to a comeback season

By Emilie Enser
May 7, 2021
In their home pool, the girls water polo team started off their season with a win. With a specific focus on communication, the team efficiently navigated the water and made their defense a force to be reckoned with.

[Photo] Girls water polo starts off strong with win against Harker

By Allison Bricca
April 23, 2021
Co-Captain junior Esha Gupta runs on a hurt knee, dribbling the ball upfield past MVHS defenders. The varsity girls soccer team ultimately lost 4–0, in a disappointing repeat of the last rivalry game.

[Photo] Rivalries and injuries: Varsity girls soccer loses to Mountain View again

By Emilie Enser
April 7, 2021
Senior May Jiang waves to her teammates as she is recognized at the last swim and dive meet of the season. After a close virtual competition against Gunn High School and Homestead High School, the team was able to relax and enjoy their final moments together.

[Photo] Seniors say goodbye to Season 1 sports

By Allan Feldman, Emily McNally, Barrett Wong, and Allison Bricca
April 2, 2021
Los Altos High School will be administering an on-campus SAT exam for upperclassmen on Tuesday, April 27, following a wave of SAT cancellations over the past year. If students wish to register for the exam, they will have until Friday, April 9, to do so.

[Photo] LAHS to administer on-campus SAT exam next month

By Allan Feldman
March 27, 2021
This morning, Los Altos High School released its Advanced Placement (AP) testing schedule for the 2020–2021 school year. The schedule was created with input from District faculty, students, families and the College Board.

[Photo] LAHS releases AP testing schedule for the 2020–2021 school year

By Anika Sikka and Natalie Wei
March 19, 2021
Today at 6 p.m., the Senior Class Council hosted a meeting to introduce the upcoming end-of-year graduation event options. While many traditions will have to adapt to coronavirus precautions, the senior class has made the necessary modifications to be able to commemorate the end of their four years at Los Altos High School.

[Photo] Graduation events discussed at Senior Class Council meeting

By Emilie Enser
March 18, 2021
The Santa Clara Valley Athletic League (SCVAL) held a public webinar yesterday at 9 a.m., where they ultimately agreed to table further discussion on playoffs until more information is released by the County. The board also released new guidelines on cohorts and voted to allow for a limited number of spectators at all Season 2 and 3 competitions.

[Photo] SCVAL Board of Managers comes to a decision on playoffs, cohorts and spectators

By Mira Sundar
March 5, 2021
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[Photo] Coronavirus Updates — Sports

By Talon Staff
March 12, 2020
Because of the inundating deaths due to the COVID-19 pandemic, John Jones and his group of 10 friends took a well deserving trip to a resort in Lake Tahoe as the tantalizing fragrance of muddy snow and the appealing vibe of Tahoe came before the pandemic for John and his friends.

[Photo] Skiing down the slopes and throwing the school year down the drain

By Marie Godderis and Anika Sikka
February 21, 2021
Yesterday, the United States Department of Education named Los Altos High School one of 27 nationwide Green Ribbon Schools for its “promising practices to improve achievement and equity.” The Green Team, a club dedicated to promoting healthy environmental practices, works to implement sustainable practices in LAHS and played a major role in Los Altos’ Green Ribbon School selection.

[Photo] LAHS introduces new classes for 2021-22 school year

By Allan Feldman and Emily McNally
February 17, 2021
The Santa Clara Valley Athletic League (SCVAL) held a public webinar today at 2 p.m. in response to student and parent complaints about the sports schedule released on Thursday, January 21. After an hour-long public comment session, the Board tabled the conversation about postseason competitions until the next public meeting at 9 a.m. on Thursday, March 4.

[Photo] SCVAL Board of Managers keeps shortened schedule; undecided on playoffs

By Allison Bricca, Naomi Schulze, and Mira Sundar
February 17, 2021
High school sports have faced considerable adversity the past year and still can’t seem to catch a break. SCVAL is holding a meeting today at 2 p.m. to work through a parent complaint that has all games and competitions on hold.

[Photo] SCVAL to host webinar in response to season schedule complaint

By Allison Bricca
February 16, 2021
Recently, Los Altos High School’s Community Health Awareness Council (CHAC) implemented a new program: freshman, sophomore and junior support groups.

[Photo] CHAC counseling implements freshman, sophomore and junior support groups

By Marie Godderis
February 7, 2021
We watched all of Harry Styles’s music videos so you don’t have to

We watched all of Harry Styles’s music videos so you don’t have to

By Anika Sikka and Elyssa Kennedy
December 19, 2020
District Wellness Coordinator William Blair clarified the objectives of the HAERT program and the District's steps to address student mental health this year.

[Photo] District wellness coordinator says students might not yet see benefits of HAERT program, clarifies its objectives

By Marie Godderis and Gil Rubinstein
December 12, 2020
Nestled in the campus library building, the College and Career Center is a place for students to receive guidance on their plans beyond LAHS. As coordinator Andrea Gorman transitions to part-time, Laura Duran takes on the main role within the center to help students transition into exploring their options online.

[Photo] College and Career Center: Coordinating futures and impacting lives

By Allison Bricca, Senior Writer
September 28, 2020
The District is planning a hybrid in-person return to campus for this semester.

[Photo] MVLA planning hybrid in-person return for this semester

By Olivia Hewang and Natalie Wei
September 18, 2020
LASD has applied for a waiver to return back to school.

[Photo] Board president discusses LASD reopening

By Garv Virginkar
September 4, 2020
Downtown Los Altos appears deserted in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. The virus has been treated as one of the biggest trends of 2020, and people not taking it seriously has led to a surge of COVID-19 cases.

[Photo] COVID-19 isn’t over just because you’re over it

By Anika Sikka
August 17, 2020
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