The Harbinger

The Harbinger The Harbinger is the student newspaper of Algonquin Regional High School in Northborough, MA.

There are 63 national parks in the United States. Junior Cami Blake has already explored 56 on a journey that has brough...
09/12/2025

There are 63 national parks in the United States. Junior Cami Blake has already explored 56 on a journey that has brought her a deep appreciation for the natural world.

Her adventures have taken her everywhere from the waterfalls of Katmai National Park in Alaska to the underground cave systems of Carlsbad Caverns National Park in New Mexico, contributing to her unique understanding of the American landscape.

Blake’s goal—to visit all U.S. national parks before she turns 18—started as a coincidence when she was 10. Everyone in her class was assigned a national park to study, and she was given Yosemite. That same day, when she got home, her father asked her whether she wanted to go to Yosemite.

“I thought he somehow knew about what we were doing in school, so I burst out laughing,” Blake said. “He asked, ‘What’s so funny?’ 'I’m like, ‘We’re doing research on Yosemite in school.’ He said, ‘Do you want to go to Yosemite?’ I’m like, ‘Sure, this sounds fun.’”

There are 63 national parks in the United States. Junior Cami Blake has already explored 56 on a journey that has brought her a deep appreciation for the natural world. Her adventures have taken her everywhere from the waterfalls of Katmai National Park in Alaska to the underground cave systems of C...

For both students and teachers, Algonquin’s scheduling process is a complex puzzle. With many layers and steps that stri...
09/03/2025

For both students and teachers, Algonquin’s scheduling process is a complex puzzle. With many layers and steps that strive to leave all satisfied with their course load, the process is far from easy and oftentimes some are left unhappy with their schedule.

Each March, every student in grades eight through 11 who are planning on attending Algonquin the following year submits class requests. However, course selection doesn’t start there. Scheduling is a complex process, one that begins in November and continues through August when students receive schedules for the upcoming school year. This long process involves students, teachers, guidance and administrators.

Head of Guidance Lisa Connery is one of the main leaders in the scheduling process.

“A lot of times we start the course selection process in November,” Connery said. “And that’s the development of new courses and existing courses. If the teacher is considering a new elective, then we’re having those conversations in November and December in preparation for printing the Program of Studies in late January.”

Read more: https://arhsharbinger.com/43426/news/the-scheduling-puzzle/ #

For both students and teachers, Algonquin’s scheduling process is a complex puzzle. With many layers and steps that strive to leave all satisfied with their course load, the process is far from easy and oftentimes some are left unhappy with their schedule.   Initial Steps Each March, every studen...

It's back to school for Algonquin Regional High School. See what some freshmen are looking forward to and worried about ...
08/28/2025

It's back to school for Algonquin Regional High School. See what some freshmen are looking forward to and worried about for the new year.

“It’s really big. It’s kinda nerve racking to be going to a whole new school, but it’s also really exciting and fun at the same time to get to meet a bunch of new people.”

With a big personality and a contagious smile, postgraduate Andreas Bello celebrated his graduation from the Community A...
06/17/2025

With a big personality and a contagious smile, postgraduate Andreas Bello celebrated his graduation from the Community Access Program (CAP) on June 11.

Bello has demonstrated significant development throughout his time in CAP. As a freshman, he was much more reserved and had trouble controlling his emotions, but he has grown into a well-rounded individual who is more than ready to take on any challenges his future holds.

“Knowing him freshman year and knowing him now, he is definitely one of the students who is a great example of what a CAP program can do for these young adults,” Special education teacher Caitlin Hynes said. “Now he just figures out routines really fast, he learns jobs really fast, he works hard until they are finished and he has really matured.”

Bello is a kindhearted student who has a very positive attitude and is always enthusiastic, whether it be dancing his heart out at the Best Buddies yearly Friendship Ball or simply chatting with his peers and close friends.
Read more:

With a big personality and a contagious smile, postgraduate Andreas Bello celebrated his graduation from the Community Access Program (CAP) on June 11. Bello has demonstrated significant development throughout his time in CAP. As a freshman, he was much more reserved and had trouble controlling his....

Through strength and grace combined with a hoop, ball, some clubs and a ribbon, freshman Amy Zhang has competed in rhyth...
06/16/2025

Through strength and grace combined with a hoop, ball, some clubs and a ribbon, freshman Amy Zhang has competed in rhythmic gymnastics at international tournaments alongside her team.

Zhang, who recently earned a bronze medal for her ribbon routine at an international competition in Canada, was playful as a child and liked to stay active which initially led her to ballet and artistic gymnastics. However, she soon found that the two weren’t what she was looking for and decided to switch to rhythmic gymnastics. In 2016, when Zhang was six, she walked into her gym for the first time, excited to see what the new sport would be like.

“I remember my first practice, I thought the apparatus was so cool and everyone was so flexible like, ‘Oh my god, how do they do that?’” Zhang said. “And I remember seeing older girls who were tossing hoops and clubs in the air and I was like, ‘I wish one day I can be like them, I can do that.’”
Read more:

Through strength and grace combined with a hoop, ball, some clubs and a ribbon, freshman Amy Zhang has competed in rhythmic gymnastics at international tournaments alongside her team. Zhang, who recently earned a bronze medal for her ribbon routine at an international competition in Canada, was play...

The boys’ baseball team had a season to remember with many standout players, memorable games and walk off home runs. The...
06/13/2025

The boys’ baseball team had a season to remember with many standout players, memorable games and walk off home runs.

The team ended the regular season 15-5, giving them the 12th seed in the postseason. They started off the campaign red hot with a five-game winning streak to open up their season. This was a whole team effort, but notable key players were seniors Preston Cote and Owen Ellsworth, along with juniors Walter Rogers, Cam Citro and Ethan Chan.

Head coach Ken MacDonald and assistant coach Jon Cahill both really loved how the whole team bought into the season and were fully invested in the game, with seniors who were also fully committed to the team.

“They did a really great job of leading by example and just really buying into the team mentality and doing whatever it takes to win,” MacDonald said.

Read more:

The boys’ baseball team had a season to remember with many standout players, memorable games and walk off home runs. The team ended the regular season 15-5, giving them the 12th seed in the postseason. They started off the campaign red hot with a five-game winning streak to open up their season. T...

For four weeks, the building’s clocks were stopped at 3:58 due to a part that needed replacement, and began running agai...
06/13/2025

For four weeks, the building’s clocks were stopped at 3:58 due to a part that needed replacement, and began running again on June 5 only to stop at 7:52 the following day. The stopped clocks have led to frustration and concerns about why the problem continues to occur.

The clocks are all interconnected (except for a few that are battery-operated) and are tied into a central system managed out of an electrical closet, along with other computing hardware, such as the Wi-Fi and PA system. The benefits of this system are that the clocks can all be synced up and are easily adjusted to the same time. However, the detriment is that when the system fails, all clocks stop.

“It’s a very unglamorous answer, but there’s been a part that we are waiting to receive,” Principal Sean Bevan said. “These are not the kind of parts you can just go to the store to purchase—they’re specialty parts and we’re waiting for it to arrive.”

Director of Informational Technology Jon Parent explained via email that the part is a small fan in the clock controller, which stopped spinning. Without this part, the controller overheated and stopped working. The replacement was ordered in May from the company Nippon Sheet Glass Co. (NSG) and is supposed to arrive sometime the week of June 9.
Read more:

For four weeks, the building’s clocks were stopped at 3:58 due to a part that needed replacement, and began running again on June 5 only to stop at 7:52 the following day. The stopped clocks have led to frustration and concerns about why the problem continues to occur. The clocks are all interconn...

A new system assigned students a lottery number to select their parking spot, aiming to create more equity in student pa...
06/12/2025

A new system assigned students a lottery number to select their parking spot, aiming to create more equity in student parking, but the change has left students uncertain about its implementation.

The administration has implemented various systems over the years, and the new system assigned participating drivers a random lottery number. Students were called down by their numbers to the Gold Office on May 29 to select their parking spot, and rising seniors were given priority over rising juniors in the lottery. In previous years, students chose their parking spot on a first-come, first-served basis at the end of the summer.

According to Principal Sean Bevan, the previous system resulted in student behavior that necessitated changes to the system.

”At the beginning of this year, we did a non-lottery system where kids lined up as the students started showing up in the middle of the night, like literally at two or three in the morning,” Bevan said. “And kids cut the line, and it just wasn’t real healthy to have kids on our campus at 2 a.m. to line up for parking, so we needed a system that prevented that.”

Assistant Principal Andrew McGowan is optimistic about the equity of the new system.

”The new lottery system, before the end of the year, just kind of gives everyone a chance to get [their spot] before the new year starts and know right where they’ll be next year,” McGowan said.
Read more:

A new system assigned students a lottery number to select their parking spot, aiming to create more equity in student parking, but the change has left students uncertain about its implementation. The administration has implemented various systems over the years, and the new system assigned participa...

From bleached hair during playoff season to spirit weeks and cleat burning, Algonquin sports teams have established mean...
06/11/2025

From bleached hair during playoff season to spirit weeks and cleat burning, Algonquin sports teams have established meaningful and long-lasting traditions that bring teammates closer together and prepare them for their upcoming competitions.

Many teams have appearance-based traditions, such as spray tans and hair color to celebrate qualifying for post-season competition.

One of the most well-known and long-standing traditions is the boys soccer team members bleaching their hair during the play-off season. This tradition was established when English teacher John Frederick coached the team in the early 2000s.

“There were quite a few different teams around the area that were doing a bunch of different things to bring their teams together,” Frederick said. “It was common to see crazy haircuts. I thought it was silly, since everyone’s hair was different; I didn’t think there was any unity. When I came to Algonquin, I thought it would be cool if we did something with our hair, but specifically if we all bleached it.”

Read more about team traditions at ARHS:

From bleached hair during playoff season to spirit weeks and cleat burning, Algonquin sports teams have established meaningful and long-lasting traditions that bring teammates closer together and prepare them for their upcoming competitions. Many teams have appearance-based traditions, such as spray...

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