Hatchet Staff 2020-2021
Ashley Tosh was born and raised in Fremont, California. This is her second year at the paper, and she is the Hatchet’s Editor in Chief. As a staff reporter last year, she often covered news and sports stories, and she always tried to find topics she was passionate about to report on. She was also The Hatchet’s Political Columnist. In the future, Tosh hopes to become a professional journalist and use her voice to make a difference in the world. Tosh has played sports her entire life, but she has a special love for softball. She dreams of playing softball in college, and uses this to motivate her in every aspect of life.
Leia Pagan is a senior at Washington and has lived in Fremont their entire life. This is their second year at the paper and first year as News Editor. They joined to pursue their passion for reporting and they enjoy covering politics and LGBTQ+ topics. Their hobbies include drawing, listening to the kpop group Loona and watching drag performances. They plan to continue their education in English or Art at San Francisco State.
Rio Collett is a Junior at Washington High School. He has lived in Fremont his entire life. This is Rio’s second year at the paper and is excited to continue next year. Rio loves exploring conspiracy theories as well as letting people know what’s going on near them. Rio loves to game on his pc and plans to go to college and get a job that pays well.
Da’Shae Hall is a senior and Features Editor at Washington. This is her third year at the paper. She was born in Palo Alto CA. She moved to Fremont when she was in kindergarten, and has lived here ever since. Da’Shae has always been inspired by writing. In her free time she is always asleep. Right now her future is very undetermined. She is very nice and NOT A CAT PERSON! In love with DOGS & OWLS! Her nickname is Shae.
Kasidee Law grew up in Manteca, California, and in Fremont. This is her second year at the Hatchet and she is the Opinions Editor. Her goal is to bring different types of opinions to light and open dialogues. Her future plans are going to community college and then transferring to a four year to get her degree in early childhood education.
A native of Fremont, Emma Warren is a senior at Washington High School. This is their second and final year at the Hatchet, where they serve as the web developer and the Arts & Entertainment editor. Emma loves working on the Hatchet and writing stories for all kinds of people, whether it be the fall play review or a portfolio of an artist. In their free time, Emma enjoys writing and indulging in the simplicity of life by watching The Office. Also a musical theater enthusiast, Emma has memorized probably everything on Broadway (but will always hate the musical Cats). Emma plans to move to the east coast after high school and get a degree in computer science or English.
Sandra Than is currently a senior at Washington High School. She was born in San Francisco but has lived in Fremont for most of her life. This is her first time writing for the paper, but she’s very excited to be a part of it. Arts and gaming is what she’s most interested in covering. As expected, Sandra herself indulges in painting and digital art both in school and outside. Through journalism, Sandra hopes to improve her writing skills and get to know more about relevant and important news.
It’s Amal Afsal’s junior year at Washington High School. He grew up in Fremont, California. This is his second year at the Hatchet and he is the social media editor. Amal enjoys writing in variety, but prefers news and opinion articles the most. In his free time, Amal likes playing video games and watching movies/TV shows. He also likes to play Badminton during open gym. Amal hopes to go to Western Michigan University where he would major in Aeronautical Engineering.
Srihitha Pallapothula is a junior at Washington High School. She has lived in Fremont, California for most of her life. This year is her first with the Hatchet. As a journalist, she plans to explore a multitude of topics such as current issues, their impact on youth, and things she hasn’t even thought of yet. She also hopes to introduce poetry and prose to the Hatchet. She enjoys creative writing, specifically writing flash fiction and short stories, reading diasporic work, baking, and cooking. In the future, she hopes to become a professional writer or journalist.
Isaac Yang is currently a junior at Washington High School who just joined the Hatchet. He grew up in Newark but moved to Fremont after fourth grade, where he met many great people who are his friends to this day. Isaac hopes to explore all aspects of journalism and cover topics of interest such as current events this year. Some of his hobbies are messing around with photoshop and occasionally doodling. When he is not being productive, Isaac likes to hang out with friends and play cards. After high school, he hopes to go to a decent college and work in the science field.
Aniket Panda is a junior at Washington High School. He has lived in Fremont for most of his life after moving at age 9 from Hoffman Estates, Illinois. This is his first year as a staff reporter for The Hatchet. He is interested in politics, world affairs, and food reviews. Aniket is also a varsity debater. His hobbies include playing with his golden retriever and watching Netflix. In the future, Aniket hopes to study political science or international relations.
John (Jack) ten Bosch is a Junior at Washington High School. He spent the first 8 years of his childhood in Los Angeles, before he moved here to Fremont. This is his first year on the Hatchet team, and he is ecstatic to be with a group of talented students. His journalistic interests include: sports, video games, technology, and world events. During his free time, John loves to play video games, play baseball, 3D animate, and build computers. In his future, John wants to be a videogame designer.
Raven Arroyo is a junior that grew up in Fremont. This is their first year at the Hatchet and they’re interested in writing about books and video games. They enjoy reading, riding their bike, taking care of their plants, painting, and writing short stories. They carry around a notebook to write down ideas for stories. They hopes that someday they will publish a book of their own.
Prisha is in 10th grade and she grew up in Fremont, California. This is her first year at the paper and she is excited to write. She is interested in writing about global affairs, racism, and poverty. Prisha’s hobbies include reading novels, writing short stories, and drawing. In the future, Prisha is considering a career in business or global affairs where she can study current issues and talk about them and try to spread awareness.
Olivia Gunnt is currently a sophomore. She was born in Stockholm, Sweden and was partially raised there, but moved to Callifornia in 2015. This is her first year at the paper, and she’s interested in writing about the LGBTQ+ community, politics, and opinions. She enjoys drawing, writing, reading, and listening to all kinds of music. Ever since Olivia was five, she’s had the dream of creating and owning her own streetwear fashion company, since she’s always loved fashion and has always been very independent.
Kaitlyn Lagrimas is a junior at Washington High School, and primarily grew up in Fremont, California. This is Kaitlyn’s first year at the paper, and she is mainly interested in writing about politics going on in the United States right now. Her hobbies include acting, writing, softball, and video making. As of right now, her future plans are to go to a community college, and then to a University in Los Angeles where she will pursue an the acting career.
Clarity Hergert, a Junior at Washington High School, grew up in San Jose. This is her first year in journalism and so far she is enjoying it. The topics she is most interested in are LGBTQ+ and addressing and seeing how we can help mental and emotional health problems. A few things she enjoys are drawing, art, writing, and music, especially song writing. She is not completely sure on what her future plans are, but her main goal is to impact the world in a positive way.
Aansh Sharma is a junior at Washington High School. He grew up in Munich, Germany and then Fremont, California. This is his first year at the Hatchet. His interests are his role of leadership in the WHS Gaming Club & in WHS Esports, which can be a hassle since he’s president of both entities, but he’s still very passionate about both his creations. In the Hatchet he will be reporting on opinions, local news, gaming/Esports news and also be running the political column. In his free time he plays video games, hangs out with friends, and brainstorms new ideas for WHS Gaming Club & Esports. Aansh also has a very big passion for computers, enjoying coding in his free time. And wanting to major in Computer Science in the future.
Aaryan Acharya is in 12th grade at Washington High School. He was born Hayward and grew up in Fremont. This is his first year at the paper. He wants do more interviews and articles on sports. His hobbies are making art and playing basketball.
Amatullah is a senior at Washington. She was born in Oakland, and grew up in Alameda and Fremont. This is her first year at the Hatchet and she loves covering topics involving politics, science, and art. Along with writing, Amatullah loves reading, microscopy, watching sports, and drawing. She volunteers at nonprofits in her free time, is part of the UN Association for Silicon Valley, and tutors children as well. Her future plans are to study in medical programs and join the healthcare field.
Colby Chai is a senior at Washington High School. He was born in Berkeley but has lived in Fremont for most of his life. This is his first year at the Hatchet. His goal is to explore different opinions on controversial topics, which many news sources are lacking. Some of his hobbies include classical piano, extreme martial arts, and automobiles. He is among the top four pianists in California. In the future, he hopes to work in private equity as a career.