The student news site of Parkway South High School. All opinion pieces represent the views of the writer alone, not the school or district.

Treaty
The student news site of Parkway South High School. All opinion pieces represent the views of the writer alone, not the school or district.

Treaty
The student news site of Parkway South High School. All opinion pieces represent the views of the writer alone, not the school or district.

Treaty

Anton Ruiz-English

Lexi Summers, Photojournalism • September 19, 2025
"I love being a YoungLife leader. It's a great way to connect with students outside of the classroom. It brings me life as well as joy to everyone there. Some advice I have for high school students is to figure out who you are and what you want. If you can solidify those two things, your choices will be grounded and firm. Sure there were times where I didn't follow my own advice. I'm human and imperfect like everyone else. But as a teacher and a YoungLife leader, what I say or encourage is always ringing in the back of my head, keeping me accountable to myself, which is a good thing." --Anton Ruiz, English teacher
Lexi Summers
“I love being a YoungLife leader. It’s a great way to connect with students outside of the classroom. It brings me life as well as joy to everyone there. Some advice I have for high school students is to figure out who you are and what you want. If you can solidify those two things, your choices will be grounded and firm. Sure there were times where I didn’t follow my own advice. I’m human and imperfect like everyone else. But as a teacher and a YoungLife leader, what I say or encourage is always ringing in the back of my head, keeping me accountable to myself, which is a good thing.” –Anton Ruiz, English teacher
Print this Story
More to Discover
More in Humans of South
"One thing that really helps me get prepared for the big game is to just listen to music and hang out with my guys. One of my biggest role models is my dad. I am always trying to make him proud. My athletic goals for this season is to get a starting spot on varsity and help my teammates and coaches be proud, and some academic goals I'm striving for are to get A's and B's in all of my classes. One piece of advice that has always stuck with me is that you only get one shot at this game of life, so you can't let one thing ruin your day. You always have to keep pushing and trying." --Cole Dudding, sophomore
Cole Dudding, sophomore
“When I have a camera in my hand, I feel and I know that I can capture moments that nobody else pays attention to. Before teaching, I worked in camera sales. I was offered to teach people how to use their camera if they wanted the help. I loved that after I helped them, they would come back to me and show me the pictures they took, and it made me feel like I was a part of their journey. Before photography, I always wanted to do something with art. It wasn’t until I took a photography class in college, and that's when I realized that was my passion. Photography is my comfort zone. Photography is what I know; that's why I took the job here.” --Sarah Zickler, photography teacher
Sarah Zickler, photography
"I am very passionate about baseball. My dad was a high school baseball coach, and growing up I went to all of the games. Seeing the joy it brought him while he was with the team. Once I saw that, I knew I wanted to follow the same path, but be better than he was. Being the head baseball coach of Parkway South High School was one of the best things ever. I love coaching baseball cause all the players I have coached make it so easy to just laugh and be serious. All of my success had shown when my team and I made it to the final four, we worked so hard for all of it, and being able to see all the work that we put in come to life was a big exciting time. One of my biggest fears is disappointing people, not doing a good enough job. Preparing my players, each game or each day, wanting to make everything about it perfect so we can succeed in the games. One piece of advice I would give to someone is always pursue what you love to do.” --Matt Brown, varsity baseball coach
Matt Brown, baseball coach
More in Showcase
Freshman Lucas Lockhart waits for his cue while playing in the pit during the marching band performance at the first home football game of the year.
The calm before the storm
Varsity Softball vs. Parkway North
Varsity Softball vs. Parkway North
South hosts Parkway Quad
South hosts Parkway Quad
Junior Jalen Jones fights to get past his opponent with the ball.
Needing a win
American flag in front of South High
Flag burning is free speech, not hate speech.
Sophomores Jack Flynn, Tayem Saleh, Chloe Rodriguez and Savannah Swinton play a game of cards during lunch on Sept. 5.
Sorry, South can't get to the phone right now...