2018-2019 Staff
Valentina Moran
Author
Valentina is 17 and she was born and raised locally in West Hartford. She plays varsity lacrosse for the school and does archery on the side. Valentina was also the varsity field hockey manager this past year, and was in t...
Franklin Robinson
Author
Franklin Robinson was born in Hartford CT. One of his big goals is being involved in sports in which he plays football, basketball, and lacrosse. When he was asked what is he most passionate about he stated, “I’m all a...
Samuel R. Pontes
Author
Samuel R. Pontes, a 17 year old senior at Hall High School, was born in Hartford, Connecticut. Sam grew up living in West Hartford, and attended Smith Elementary and King Philip Middle School. He enjoys vacationing to Brazil, w...
Enrik Pretashi
Author
Enrik Pretashi is a senior at Hall High School who was born in Cogneliano, Italy. He lived there until he turned six years old, when he and his family decided to move to the United States. More specifically West Hartford, Con...
Mariana Betancourt
Author
Mariana Betancourt is a 17-year-old senior at Hall, who’s birthday is June 4, 2001. She was born in Hartford Hospital and currently lives with her dad and grandma in West Hartford. Mariana also included that her mom lives in ...
Nabeel Gulaid
Author
Nabeel is a 17 year old senior who has lived in west Hartford his whole life. He has an 20 year old sister who he is close with. During his free time, Nabeel likes to hang out with his friends and play basketball. He states, “...
Zaria Pena
Author
Zarya Beatriz Pena Salto is a 18-year-old senior at Hall High School. Zarya has previously lived in Charleston and Chicago, Illinois. She was born at Mercy Hospital in Chicago, Illinois on April 18th, 2000. Although Hall High ...
Todd Cravedi
Author
Todd Cravedi is a 17 year old Hall High student who love playing sports. He was born in Newton Wellesley, Massachusetts in 2001. Todd is the captain of both the varsity football and lacrosse team. When asked if he was a writer o...
Sarah Tangarife
Author
Sarah Tangarife, age 17 was born in Hartford CT. She then moved to West Hartford. Sarah is interested in journalism because she is able to write about herself, others experiences and to better understand the world around her. After hig...
Ava Morin
Author
Ava Morin has lived in West Hartford. Connecticut, her whole life, and made her way through Morley, King Philip and now Hall. After interviewing her, it was clear that Ava has an artsy vibe -- an appreciation for literature and...
Andrew Hobbs
Author
Andrew Hobbs is an 18 year old who has lived in three different places. He was born in Overland Park, Kansas, in 2001, and lived there from 2001-2004. He then moved to Wildwood, Missouri, where he grew up, and moved t...
Ariana Edgar
Author
Ariana Edgar, known as “Ari”, was born on April 19, 2001. During her free time, she enjoys playing tennis, working out, and spending time with her friends. She has always been known for her creative perspective, and holds...
David Rothstein
Author
David Rothstein is a Senior attending Hall High School. David was born August 29, 2001 at Hartford Hospital. David has enjoyed all four of his years at Hall High and says that “Hall has expanded my education and has been a gre...
Stone Reid
Author
John “Stone” Reid, a senior at Hall High school, was born at Hartford Hospital on April 5, 2001. He started off in Bloomfield, Connecticut for 2 years, then moved to West Hartford. When asked what he is passionate about, St...
Blake Morin
Author
Joseph “Blake” Morin was born on June 13, 2001. He is currently enrolled at Hall High School and is finishing his senior year. After high school, he hopes to get into Roanoke College and run track because he got a full sch...
Matthew Mendoza
Author
Matthew Mendoza grew up in West Hartford his entire life. He enjoys photography and playing the violin. He has recently been accepted to the University of Colorado, and is fully committed to going to this college. Matt can t...
Joe Stern
Author
Joe Stern is an 18-year-old Jamaican/American senior at Hall. He has a younger sister in the 11th grade. Joe is very passionate about sports like basketball and football and likes to relax and play video games in his spare t...
Tommy Sullivan
Author
Tommy Sullivan is a 17 year old attending Hall High School. He was born on September 16th, 2001, in Hartford Hospital. Tommy loves to play sports, he plays football and also swims for Hall. When talking about sports he claims,...
Sarah Peschke
Author
Sarah Peschke was born in Manchester, Connecticut on October 17, 2001. Sarah loves the exploring the outdoors and watching sports with her friends. Sarah plays soccer year round both on the Hall varsity team and for “Sportin...
Natalia Sherman
Author
Natalia Sherman is a 17 year-old senior at Hall High School. She was born at St. Francis Hospital in Hartford, Connecticut. Before attending Hall, Natalia attended King Philip Middle School and Smith Elementary School. Na...
Miller Anderson
Author
Miller Anderson, born in Hartford Connecticut on March 13, 2001. He lives with both his parents, and his brother is attending University Of Vermont. He thinks journalism is important because “you can learn more about ...
Lauren Hines
Author
Lauren Hines is a senior at Hall High School that “likes doing crazy things, being adventurous, and doing things out of my comfort zone.” Lauren is the opposite of her twin sister, Emma, but they still get along very well....
Andrew Skwiot
Author
Andrew Skwiot, a 17 year old senior at Hall High School, was born in West Hartford, Connecticut. During his childhood, Andrew attended Bugbee Elementary School and then proceeded to King Philip Middle School. Similar to h...
Sam Harrington
Author
Sam Harrington is a 17 year old senior from West Hartford, Connecticut. Sam has been the kicker for Hall’s football team since freshman year. He also plays basketball and baseball, where his true passion lies. Sam is taking...
Clay Courtmanche
Author
This semester Clay Courtmanche will be joining Hall Records. Clay is a senior at Hall High School. In his free time he enjoys “...playing soccer, playing video games, hanging out with friends, and pond hockey”. An...
Megan Polun
Author
Get excited HallRecord viewers, we have some news for you! This semester, Megan Polun will join our team of journalists; she is a native of West Hartford and has had the pleasure of going through West Hartford’s public education system...
Luis Coraspe
Author
Luis Coraspe was born in Hartford and is now a 17-year-old senior at Hall High School. Since Luis enjoys Mrs. Fransen as a teacher, He is taking journalism. Luis is a good listener, stays on top of his work, and doesn't give u...
Nathan bukowy
Author
Nathan Bukowy, is a 17-year-old senior at Hall High School. He was born in Hartford, CT., Nathan currently lives with his mother in West Hartford. Nathan is a hard working senior who’s trying to get by like everyone else. H...
Carly Zyskowski
Author
Carly Zyskowski, a senior at Hall High School, grew up in West Hartford living with her parents and a dog named Cody. Carly is sociable, enjoys getting involved in class, and likes collaborating with others as it’s another w...
Max Boyd
Author
Max Boyd is a 17-year-old senior at Hall. Max spent the first 14 years of his life living outside Atlanta, Georgia, until moving to West Hartford, in the summer going into freshman year. He is a 2nd year captain for the Basketball ...
Michael Rossler
Author
Michael Rossler, a rising senior at Hall, is a skilled writer and photographer. Born and raised in Connecticut, the 17 year old often spends time doing landscape design, carpentry, and, most importantly, playing video games. His major ...
Zan Lima
Author
As an aspiring journalist, Zan says that she has “always been passionate about writing.” She hopes to bring a new edge to this class. Filled with passion and professionalism Zanela plans to use this class as a starting...
Izzy Zytka
Author
Spontaneous, modest, neutral idealist and great observer are adjectives that describes Izzy Zytka. On her free time, she loves to be outdoors, either kayaking, skateboarding or participating in any other sport. Izzy is also...
Aleena Thomas
Author
June 19, 2001, Aleena Thomas emerged from the maternity ward of Saint Francis Hospital, setting in motion a life of unforeseen normalcy. Aleena is a modern teenager who enjoys the usual activities- hanging out with fr...
Aleena Thomas
Author
June 19, 2001. Aleena Thomas emerged from the maternity ward of Saint Francis Hospital, setting in motion a life of unforeseen normalcy. Aleena is a modern teenager who enjoys the usual activities; hanging out with...
Jaylaan Ortolaza
Author
Jaylaan Ortolaza is a 17-year-old senior at William H. Hall High School. She lives with her family of five, which includes her three sisters and mother. Naturally, she spends the weekends drinking iced caramel macchiatos from Du...
Carly Zyskowski
Author
Carly Zyskowski, a senior at Hall High School, grew up in West Hartford where she lives with her parents and her dog named Cody. She’s sociable, enjoys getting involved in class, and likes collaborating with others since it’s anothe...
Alexis Stewart
Author
Alexis Stewart is a 17-year-old senior at Hall High School. Born in Massachusetts, Alexis now lives in West Hartford with her family, and her dog, Panda. She enjoys singing, and is a jazz dancer in Pops ‘N Jazz. Alexis w...
Leah Simanovich
Author
Leah Simanovich, a Hall High School senior, is a 17 year old who has been living in West Hartford since birth. She lives with her mom and dad, and has an older sister who is 35 and named Inessa. “Very close...We talk everyda...
Zach Ellovich
Author
Zach Ellovich is a 17-year-old senior at Hall High School. When asked about his passions, he said, “I'm very social. I always have a good time. I'm an athlete, and a great eater of foods.” Playing two varsity sports for Hall (ba...
Sinead Marie
Author
Sinead Marie is a 17-year-old senior at Hall High School. Sinead was born in Pittsburgh, PA before moving to Minnesota, Arizona, and finally settling in West Hartford, CT in 2008. She is the youngest of three children in her family...
Sean Donovan
Editor-in-Chief
Sean Donovan is 17 years old that lives with his family in West Hartford, Connecticut where he attends Hall High School as a senior. He has been writing for the school newspaper for the past three years and is now one of the Editors-in-Chief;...
Nina Faynshtayn
Editor-in-Chief
Nina Faynshtayn is an activist, writer, and self-proclaimed politico. She dedicates her time to writing about a wide range of topics and genres including international policy, activism, arts, physical sciences, and poetry. Her...
Hayden Meyer
Journalist
Hayden Meyer is a 17-year-old senior here at Hall High School and a long-time resident of West Hartford. Although she has never written in a newspaper before, Hayden thinks it would be an awesome opportunity. Hayden mainly took...
Jason Cramer
Journalist
Known mostly for his charisma, story-telling talents, and ability on the volleyball court, Jason Cramer also has a knack for journalism. Jason is one of the most passionate people when it comes to assuring the public isn't be...
Jack Wisialowski
Journalist
Jack Wisialowski is a 17-year-old senior at Hall High School. He intends to be a truth-seeking author for the school newspaper. Jack has an interest in story-telling that began at a young age, saying that he’s “always been a li...
Kam'Rim Mckain
writer
Kam’rim a senior attending William H. Hall High School, and is currently 16 years old. Kam’s mother passed away when he was 1 year old, so he has been living with his grandmother ever since. While he enjoys sports such as ...
Daniel Towner
Writer
Daniel Robert Towner, a senior at Hall High School, was born in Las Vegas, Nevada. Daniel has a large family, with two brothers and one sister. He grew up living in Las Vegas for fourteen years and then moved to West Hartford...
Lizzie Verives
Writer
Lizzie Verives is a 17 year old female who goes to school at West Hartford. She was born at St. Francis Hospital in Hartford. Lizzie Verives has always lived in West Hartford. She attended Smith Elementary School and King Phil...
Rory Kane
Writer
Rory Kane, The Boston MA native was born In March of 2001 and moved to West Hartford at a young age. Rory came up through the whps system attending Norfeldt Elementary and later King Philip. Stating that English was her fa...
Jason Hoopes
Writer
Jason Hoopes is a 17 year old Hall High School student born in Hartford, CT. He has lived in West Hartford his whole life and lives with his parents and his brother. Jason is very passionate about music, especially jazz, as he is ...
Julia Tannenbaum
Writer
Julia Wilson Tannenbaum is a 18 year old, senior at Hall High School, who was born on May 8th, 2000, in Pasadena, California. She lived there for three years before her family made the decision to move to Connecticut. She has...
Mac Mahoney
Writer
Mac Mahoney is a 17 year-old senior brought up in West Hartford, CT. Born on September 19th, 2001, Mac lives with his mom, dad, and twin sister, Katie. He uses his free time to complete any unfinished work and relax with his homebo...
Bryant Duong
Writer
Bryant Duong was born on February 28, 2001 in Hartford, CT and is currently a senior at Hall High School. He has a younger sister named Tiffany and a new puppy named Richie. Outside of school, Bryant works at Kids Korner at the Man...
Mehmet Kaya
Writer
Born on June 4, 2000, Mehmet Kaya is an 18-year-old high school senior and resides within West Hartford, CT. As of the time of creating this profile, he attends Hall High School, and he lives with his parents, his older brothers...
James Parker Evans
Writer
James Parker Evans, “JP” to all his friends, is a senior at Hall High School. He was born in Hartford and when the time came for him to go to school, his parents moved two blocks into West Hartford so that he would be able to go ...
Matthew Keeley
Writer
Matthew “Matt” Keeley was born in Hartford, Connecticut, on September 30, 2001. Growing up in West Hartford, Connecticut, he is currently on track to graduate from William H. Hall High School in 2019. He spends his free...
Ben Delagarza
Writer
Ben Delagarza is a 17 year old senior at William Hall High School he likes going by Ben instead of Benjamin. Ben had came to West Hartford in his freshman year of High school, before that he lived in Hartford. He has never lived...
Nolan Tibball
Writer
Nolan Patrick Tibball is a senior at Hall High School. He is a 17 year old who loves to play football, lacrosse, eat food, and hang out with friends. Nolan was born in Glastonbury, CT. He lives with his parents and his sister...
Julia Hartzog
Writer
As a new aspiring journalist coming to HallRecord in the spring of 2019, Julia Kathryn Hartzog is a writer for the people. She decided to write for Hall Record because she loves the editor in chief, Ms. Fransen and believes her r...
Vincent Chen
Writer
Vincent Chen was born on February 26, 2001 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He is currently 17 years old and has moved a total of three times in his life. Vincent is involved with the tennis team at Hall High School, an...
Awele Ikani
Writer
Awele Ikani is a 17 year old senior at William H. Hall High School in West Hartford, CT. She has spent most of her life in West Hartford, after moving from New Britain at the age of 4. Awele has never wrote for a newspaper bef...
Lauren Barlow
Writer
Lauren Barlow is a 17 year old student that is currently attending Hall High School. She was born in Northborough, Massachusetts, but moved to West Hartford when she was four and a half. She lives with her mom; which is great be...
Grace Donovan
Writer
Grace Donovan is a Hall High School senior who was born on September 9, 2001. She currently lives with her sister, her two dogs, and one cat. As an active athlete on Hall’s row team, she attends the strenuous daily practices. ...
Nicole Herz
Writer
Who is Nikki Herz? Nikki Herz is a senior at Hall High School who loves hockey and lacrosse. In her free time, Nikki enjoys watching Netflix and spending time with friends. Her favorite social media is Snapchat beca...
Charlie Luipold
Writer
Charlie Luipold is a 17-year-old senior at Hall High School. He’s been a citizen of West Hartford his whole life and is therefore informed on all the activities around his school and town. This motivated senior says, “I...
Ryan O'Connor
Writer
Ryan O'Connor is a 17-year-old senior at Hall High School who believes journalism is a good fit for him because it is a “neat subject.” He is interested in the media, and he wants to pursue it in the hopes that it will be...
Josh Fernandes
Writer
Josh Fernandes is a 17-year-old who has just begun his final year of high school. He has entered the new school year with a growing interest in journalism. Josh doesn’t have any experience as a journalist, but he plans to consider...
Yoav Raichelson
Writer
Yoav Raichelson is an 18-year-old senior at Hall High School. He currently lives in West Hartford, CT, with his mother, father, and younger sister, who also attends Hall. Yoav has always been a good writer; in his p...
Lily Braidich
Writer
Lily Braidich is a 17-year-old student at Hall High School. She was born in Connecticut and has lived there her whole life. She lives with her parents, three sisters, and two dogs. Lily is taking journalism because she does n...
Joseph Dowd
Writer
Joseph Donald Dowd is an outstanding 16-year-old senior at Hall High school who is striving to be the greatest he can be. Joseph is not a new face in journalism; he wrote in his elementary school newspaper when he was in the fo...
Lindsay Fox
Writer
Lindsay Fox is 17-year-old and a senior here at Hall High School. In this class, Lindsay would like learn how to ask the right questions so that her writing can expand. Although Lindsay has never written for any kind of newspap...
Caroline Alzamora
Writer
Caroline Alzamora is a 17 year old senior at Hall High School. She has lived in West Hartford for most of her life. She has 2 sisters, one older and one younger. Her family is Peruvian and Puerto Rican. In Caroline’s free tim...
Nathan Bukowy
Writer
Nathan Bukowy, is a 17-year-old senior at Hall High School. He was born in Hartford CT., Nathan currently lives with his mother in West Hartford. Nathan is a hard working senior trying to get by like everyone else. He enjoy...
Michael DiPietro
Writer
Michael DiPietro is a senior attending Hall High School in West Hartford, CT. Michael moved from Manchester, CT in third grade and started his West Hartford education at Whiting Lane Elementary. After three supremely successfu...
Elias Heinen
Writer
As a 17-year-old senior at Hall High School, Eli Heinen has always been interested in journalism, ever since watching sports newscasters as a kid. Eli has never written for a newspaper before, which fuels his interest towards the ...
Amy Zazon
Writer
Amy Zazon is a 15-year-old junior attending William H. Hall High School. She grew up in Waterbury,CT, and attended a private school until she moved to Southbury, CT during third grade. Where she spent the rest of her elementar...
Mitchell Palczewski
Writer
Mitchell Palczewski is a 17-year-old senior at Hall High School. He grew up and still lives in West Hartford with his parents and his dog, Caramel. His older brother, Sam, is currently a sophomore at UMASS. Althoug...
Luca Bonilha
Writer
Although the aspiring journalist Luca Bonilha has never written for a news source or even been on the news, he has big plans for his journalism career. Luca has traveled the world, living in China for five years, and frequently ...
Griffin Van Rye
Writer
17-year-old Griffin Van Rye has lived in West Hartford his entire life, attending Morley Elementary and King Philip Middle School before arriving at Hall. Griffin lives with his Mother and Father, and has a sister who graduated ...
Jack McHale
Writer
Jack Gerald McHale is a native of West Hartford CT, and has been his whole life. He is seventeen-years-old, and lives with his mother and father. He has two siblings who are both in college, and no longer live at home. Jack at...
Diana Taboada
Writer
Diana Taboada is a 17-year-old senior who was born in Lima, Peru. She moved to West Hartford when she was 6 years old for a better education. When she first moved from Peru, she found it simple and easy to learn English since...
Carl Nicklas
Writer
Carl Nicklas is a 16-year-old senior who attends Hall High School. Born in Hartford, he lives in West Hartford with his close-knit family of four. His mom, Senora Nicklas, teaches Spanish at Hall, and his older brother studies a...
Jaxson Meyer
Writer
Jaxson Meyer is a 17 year-old transgender senior who was born in New Britain,CT. He moved to West Hartford at age five in order to receive a better education. Jaxson is a huge advocate for the LGBTQ+ community which is why h...
Charlie Luipold
Writer
Charlie Luipold is a 17- year- old senior at Hall High School. He’s been a citizen of West Hartford and is informed of all the activities around his school and town. This motivated senior says “I want to get to the truth of Hall...
Colin Delaney
Writer
(Colin Delaney right) Colin Delaney is a 17-year-old senior at Hall High School. A loyal friend, Colin is always around to help others and make people laugh. Colin enjoys sports, and is a dedicated football player who excels in ...
Ryan Druckenmiller
Writer
Ryan Druckenmiller is a 17-year-old senior attending William H. Hall High School, located in West Hartford, CT. Although Ryan has no prior journalism experience, he claims, “I am interested in knowing the aspects of being a ...
Bryan Renker
Writer
Bryan Richard Renker is a 17-year-old senior at Hall High School who has lived in West Hartford, CT his whole life. He is the youngest in the family, and has two older siblings, both of whom no longer live at home wit...
Josh Fernandes
Writer
Josh Fernandes is a 17-year-old who has just begun his final year of high school. He has entered the new year with a growing interest in journalism. Josh doesn’t have any experience as a journalist, but plans to consider majoring ...
Sophia Bolio
Writer
Sophia Bolio is a senior at Hall High School. She was born in Boston and moved to CT when she was three years old. Sophia has a brother who is 15 years old. Sophia’s hobbies include reading and playing a variety of inst...
Lucas Diaz
Writer
Lucas Diaz is a 17-year-old senior at William H. Hall High School. Lucas is taking journalism because he enjoys reading and wants to graduate from high school early. He is determined to make it through the course, stating, ...
Maggie Grant
Writer
Maggie Grant is a committed athlete, who is captain of both field hockey and lacrosse. She has been looking forward to field hockey, her favorite sport, all summer. A lifelong West Hartford resident, Maggie is the middle sister of ...
Will Hutensky
Writer
Will Hutensky is a 17-year-old senior who has attended Hall High School since his freshman year. Will was born and raised in West Hartford, CT, with his older brother Jack, and his Mom and Dad. Will attended Norfeldt Elementa...
Jason Chan
Writer
Jason Chan is a 16-year-old senior, and a brand new journalist to HallRecord. He was born on December 25, 2001 in New York City, and will be 17 when he graduates high school. Prior to becoming a journalist, Jason wa...
Nefari Hassan
Writer
Nefari Hassan is a 17-year-old senior at Hall High School. He was born at Cooley Dickinson Hospital in Northampton, MA. After a tough upbringing, Nefari moved to West Hartford and currently lives with his uncle, step-aunt, brot...
Shayneshka Donado
Writer
Shayneshka Donado is a 17-year-old senior who goes to Hall High School. She is passionate about photography, is curious to know about the process of how papers are written, and is also interested in learning about international...
Sylvie Pidto
Writer
Sylvie Pidto is a 16-year-old senior at Hall High School. She's taking journalism in hopes of having a new, creative outlet to express her passion for writing. In her freetime Sylvie writes in a journal about her life. She describes...
Sam Montoya
Writer
Sam Montoya is a 17-year-old senior at William H. Hall High School. Although Sam was born and raised in West Hartford, his family is from Colombia. When asked what he likes to do, he said, “I like to play soccer in my free ...
Lindsay Fox
Writer
Lindsay Fox is 17 years-old and a senior here at Hall High School. In this class, Lindsay would like learn how to ask the right questions so that her writing can expand. Lindsay has never written for any kind of newspaper befor...
Hayden Meyer
Writer
Hayden Meyer is a 17-year-old senior here at Hall High School and a long-time resident of West Hartford. She has never written in a newspaper before, but thinks it would be an awesome opportunity. Hayden mainly took this class b...
Luis Coraspe
Writers
Luis Coraspe was born in Hartford and is now a 17-year-old senior at Hall High School. Since Luis enjoys Mrs. Frasen as a teacher, He is taking journalism. Luis is a good listener, stays on top of his work, and doesn't...
Adam Liebman
Writers
Adam Liebman, 17 years old, is a senior at Hall High School. He lived in Texas for 2 years, then moved to Massachusetts for 6 before settling in West Hartford. Adam has one brother that also attends Hall High school. Many of you m...