The Pioneer

Mountaineer views on today's news.
West Orange High School Winter Guard
Winter Guard: An Unspoken Art
WOHS Welcomes its Newest Dean: Lmani Viney
WOHS Welcomes its Newest Dean: Lmani Viney
The Surge in HBCUs
The Surge in HBCUs
"How Love Goes" Graces the West Orange High School Stage
“How Love Goes” Graces the West Orange High School Stage
WOHS's Newest AP Course: AP African American Studies
WOHS’s Newest AP Course: AP African American Studies
West Orange Diwali Festival 2024
West Orange Diwali Festival 2024
West Orange High School Students Walk for Palestine
West Orange High School Students Walk for Palestine
West Orange's favorite turkey prances around despite being hit by a dart.
Turkules: The Turkey Who Enchanted West Orange
Residents Left in the Lurch after the West Orange Public Library Pushes Completion Date- Again
Residents Left in the Lurch after the West Orange Public Library Pushes Completion Date- Again
Montclair Pride 2023
Montclair Pride 2023
The Stories That Will Define Formula 1 in 2025
The Stories That Will Define Formula 1 in 2025
Everyone Watches Women's Sport
Everyone Watches Women’s Sport
The cheerleaders at the girls basketball vs Morristown game (2/28/2025).
WOHS Basketball Cheer Team
West Orange High School Winter Guard
Winter Guard: An Unspoken Art
Hurts and Lynn posing doing the Delta Sigma Theta sign and the Omega Psi Phi sign.
Jalen Hurts and his All Female Team
Nine student-athletes from lacrosse, soccer, and basketball signed at West Orange High School on November 13, 2024.
Class of 2025 Signing Day at WOHS
Committed: Jake Jeffay to Hobart University
Committed: Jake Jeffay to Hobart University
Committed: Ricardo Camacho to Monroe College
Committed: Ricardo Camacho to Monroe College
Image via Dylan Wilkes
Committed: Dylan Wilkes
Image via Olivia Prescott
Committed: Olivia Prescott
The Family Found in the Loneliest Sport
The Family Found in the Loneliest Sport
The track and field team take a group photo at the 2023 Winter Sports Media day.
Teamwork Makes the Dreamwork
Swim teams enjoy a team dinner before counties.
Diving Deeper into the WOHS Swim Team
En-garde Into the Fencing Season
En-garde Into the Fencing Season
Girls Volleyball named Conference Champions!
Girls Volleyball named Conference Champions!
White Paint, Same Old Message: Beyoncé Levi's Ad was Defaced
White Paint, Same Old Message: Beyoncé Levi’s Ad was Defaced
Dangers of Family Vlogging
Prom: A Capitalist Dream Marketed as a Teen Tradition
Prom: A Capitalist Dream Marketed as a Teen Tradition
Beyoncé, Album of the Year, and the Subtle Persistence of Racism in the Grammy Awards
Beyoncé, Album of the Year, and the Subtle Persistence of Racism in the Grammy Awards
Misogynoir
Misogynoir
Deportation Throughout the United States
Deportation Throughout the United States
The Surge in HBCUs
The Surge in HBCUs
Universal Dance Association College Nationals 2025
Universal Dance Association College Nationals 2025
The Struggle of Hawaiian Culture Survival
The Struggle of Hawaiian Culture Survival
Trump signs a stack of executive order on the evening of his inauguration
What to Expect: The Environment under the Trump Administration
Deportation Throughout the United States
Deportation Throughout the United States
The Surge in HBCUs
The Surge in HBCUs
Universal Dance Association College Nationals 2025
Universal Dance Association College Nationals 2025
The Struggle of Hawaiian Culture Survival
The Struggle of Hawaiian Culture Survival
Hurricane Helene
Hurricane Helene
War in Gaza Overshadows War in Ukraine
War in Gaza Overshadows War in Ukraine
Drones over New Jersey
Drones over New Jersey
A Ukrainian soldier retreats through a snowy forest after firing a propelled grenade.
New Dynamics in the Russia-Ukraine War
The Israel-Lebanon Conflict
The Israeli Hamas War
The Israeli Hamas War
Trump signs a stack of executive order on the evening of his inauguration
What to Expect: The Environment under the Trump Administration
Governor Murphy Phone Ban Disconnects Him From the Youth
Governor Murphy Phone Ban Disconnects Him From the Youth
Donald Trump (L), Vince Mcmahon (R) facing off in a press conference in 2007.
Vince McMahon and Donald Trump: A Billion Dollar Friendship
2024 Was Harris' Failure, Not the Democrats 
2024 Was Harris’ Failure, Not the Democrats 
What will Kamala Harris do now?
What will Kamala Harris do now?
Lina-Manuel Miranda's Final Bow as Alexander Hamilton
Hamilton’s Ten Year Anniversary – Everything We Know Right Now
The Pop Producer You’ve Never Heard Of
The Pop Producer You’ve Never Heard Of
Breakfast Club (1985)
The Breakfast Club: 40 Years Of The Teen Experience
Ye West and Bianca Censori together in 2024.
Censori and West… Ye or Nay?
Women in Pop Music
Women in Pop Music
West Orange High School Winter Guard
Winter Guard: An Unspoken Art
Poetry Is Not That Bad
Poetry Is Not That Bad
Into The Woods
Into The Woods
The Show Must Go On at WOHS
The Show Must Go On at WOHS
My Last Musical
My Last Musical
History of Mother's Day
History of Mother’s Day
Why do Spring Allergies Happen?
Why do Spring Allergies Happen?
A Guide to Help You Get Into Your Dream School
A Guide to Help You Get Into Your Dream School
Valentine’s Day Gift Guide: Friends, Crushes, and Significant Others
Valentine’s Day Gift Guide: Friends, Crushes, and Significant Others
A New Orleans Voodoo Museum
Haitian Cultural Voodoo
Asian Hate
Asian Hate
CHRISTCHURCH, NEW ZEALAND - MARCH 08: Members of Waihirere from Gisborne perform during the Te Matatini National Kapa Haka Festival 2015 at Hagley Park on March 8, 2015 in Christchurch, New Zealand. The National Kapa Haka festival is a biennial event celebrating Māori traditional performing arts. (original article on Block Hotel)
AAPI Month: The Māori Culture
Addressing the Gap: The Importance of Including AAPI Representation in Children's Books
Addressing the Gap: The Importance of Including AAPI Representation in Children’s Books
Moana Succeeds in Cash and Fails in Representation
Moana Succeeds in Cash and Fails in Representation
Representation in Hollywood and Why Avantika is Receiving Backlash
Representation in Hollywood and Why Avantika is Receiving Backlash
Shirley Chisholm was a notable politician who was the first black woman to run for president.
Women in Office
Honoring Women's History Month
Honoring Women’s History Month
Women in Pop Music
Women in Pop Music
Women in Royalty
Women in Royalty
The Woman Who Braved LA’s Crime Scene
The Woman Who Braved LA’s Crime Scene
A New Chapter: Diverse Leadership Redefines West Orange Public Schools
A New Chapter: Diverse Leadership Redefines West Orange Public Schools
Black Inventors
Black Inventors
The Surge in HBCUs
The Surge in HBCUs
SAY THEIR NAMES
SAY THEIR NAMES
Intersectional Environmentalism and Black History
Intersectional Environmentalism and Black History

The Pioneer

The Pioneer
Ben Albert

Ben Albert

Ben is the Athletics Editor and can be reached at benjaminalbert@westorangeschools.org

All content by Ben Albert
With pine tar visible on his neck (pictured here), Michael Pineda caused a brief controversy in baseball over the use of the substance. Credit: TIME

Major League Baseball’s Sticky Situation

Ben Albert, Athletics Editor
June 22, 2021
Craziest Laws in The United States

Craziest Laws in The United States

Ben Albert, Athletics Editor
June 13, 2021
The New York Knicks Are Back

The New York Knicks Are Back

Ben Albert, Athletics Editor
May 27, 2021
The Devil, Satan Shoes, and Human Blood: What’s Been Going on With Lil Nas X? 

The Devil, Satan Shoes, and Human Blood: What’s Been Going on With Lil Nas X? 

Ben Albert , Athletics Editor
May 3, 2021
WHM: Patsy Mink

WHM: Patsy Mink

Ben Albert, Athletics Editor
March 31, 2021
6 Dr. Seuss Books Removed From Publishing

6 Dr. Seuss Books Removed From Publishing

Ben Albert, Athletics Editor
March 29, 2021
The Amazin’ Mets? Inside a Rocky Start to the Steve Cohen Era

The Amazin’ Mets? Inside a Rocky Start to the Steve Cohen Era

Ben Albert, Athletics Editor
March 6, 2021
25-year-old left wing Willie O'Ree, the first black player of the National Hockey League, warms up in his Boston Bruins uniform, prior to the game with the New York Rangers, at New York's Madison Square Garden, on November 23, 1960. (AP Photo)

History On Ice: The Willie O’Ree Story

Ben Albert, Athletics Editor
February 17, 2021
Course Selection Spotlight: Newspaper 

Course Selection Spotlight: Newspaper 

Ben Albert, Athletics Editor
February 1, 2021
More Than a Game: 2020 Sports in Review 

More Than a Game: 2020 Sports in Review 

Ben Albert, Athletics Editor
December 21, 2020
A Peek Inside the 2020 Election

A Peek Inside the 2020 Election

Ben Albert, Sports Editor
November 30, 2020
Mark Kelly Wins Arizona Senate Seat

Mark Kelly Wins Arizona Senate Seat

Ben Albert, Athletics Editor
November 30, 2020
Trick Or Treating Alternatives For Pandemic Times

Trick Or Treating Alternatives For Pandemic Times

Ben Albert, Athletics Editor
October 30, 2020
The Quarantine Chronicles  

The Quarantine Chronicles  

Ben Albert, Athletics Editor
October 19, 2020
Trump & Other Government Officials Test Positive For COVID-19

Trump & Other Government Officials Test Positive For COVID-19

Ben Albert, Athletics Editor
October 19, 2020
Meet the Staff: Kiley Capstraw

Meet the Staff: Kiley Capstraw

Ben Albert
September 21, 2020
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