VESTAVIA HILLS HIGH SCHOOL NEWS

Photo Credits: iStock The faculty highlight for this issue is none other than Mr. Mundt… a 10th grade Algebra two teacher. In the years that Mr. Mundt has been at Vestavia, he has impacted so many young lives through a math class. And most importantly, he is a friend for quite literally anyone from the moment they walk into his A241 classroom. I had the privilege of being taught by Mr. Mundt last year, and it was unlike any math class I have ever had. Math as a high school

Photo Credits: Lane Peterson, the cast of the Tales of Trickery Vestavia’s Theater program performs a variety of shows all year round. Most recently, they performed their Senior Directed Plays. Senior Directed Plays are a set of performances that are completed led and directed by the Seniors in the Vestavia Hills Theatre Department. For this article, I asked Madelyn Garrick, a junior in the theatre department, to tell me a little bit more about the process and the behind the

Photo Credits: Vestavia Hills City Schools Every year, over 1.3 million high school juniors compete for the National Merit Scholarship, with only 16,000 students nationwide qualifying as semifinalists. Of those 16,000 students, 234 qualified in Alabama, including 15 from Vestavia Hills High School. So how do you become a semifinalist in the first place? Well, it’s not easy. Students have to take the PSAT/NMSQT, a shorter, slightly easier version of the SAT. Although studen

Photo Credits: Ollie Wilson What makes a class something you want to be a part of? Is it a lack of homework? A nice teacher? Easy work? For me and many other students, the answer is community. French is one of the five languages that are traditionally offered at Vestavia Hills High School, and in my opinion, it’s the best. Field trips to food days--it’s got it all. Students are offered six levels to take: French one through five, and AP. Many students that are in French, in

Photo Credits: Abigail Wang, Vestavia Hills High School On September 19th, Vestavia’s Speech and Debate team hosted their annual Novice Tournament. The tournament was a huge success with competitors from all over Alabama travelling to compete! The Novice Tournament is especially tailored for first year competitors, which gives them the opportunity to learn how a tournament works, and also compete against students with a similar experience level. The Speech and Debate coach

Photo Credits: carlyraemusic.com The media below contains the opinion of an individual student and therefore does not represent or speak to the values of Vestavia Hills High School and Vestavia Hills City Schools. From high-energy stadium hip hop to experimental electronic soundscapes and the mastery of signature genres, 2026 has been a significant year for the evolution of music. Top-tier artists of various genres continue to push their stylistic boundaries with both commer

Courtesy of VHHS Rebel Marching Band Instagram The media below contains the opinion of an individual student and therefore does not represent or speak to the values of Vestavia Hills High School and Vestavia Hills City Schools . Every year, in the nation's capital of Washington, D.C., a festival is held to celebrate the blooming of the city's cherry blossom trees and the coming of spring. However, the festival is not just a commemoration of joy and growth; rather, it has d

Courtesy of Vestavia Hills High School Student Government Association Instagram The media below contains the opinion of an individual student and therefore does not represent or speak to the values of Vestavia Hills High School and Vestavia Hills City Schools. You’ve definitely seen posters in the lunchroom or heard announcements telling you to vote for SGA officers. Hopefully you did your civic duty and actually voted. Maybe you were among those taping up posters, campaign

Courtesy of Mateo Giraud on Unsplash Summer is on the horizon and we’re almost free from school, but you may be wondering to yourself how you’re going to spend your relaxation time. Lucky for you, Birmingham offers a variety of things to do once we get through exams. Maybe your feet are itching to touch some grass! Fun fact, Alabama has the greatest biodiversity in the nation. You experience the wonders of nature’s beauty and visit one of our many naturally abundant parks,

Your Division 7A Section 3 Champions! All Photo Credits: Jason Ding Two pa-pa’s from the ball bouncing against the court. A tennis player donning their Vestavia uniform, feet positioned behind the base line, preparing for a serve. Strategies flit through their head. It’s deuce; the game could go either way. Complete silence from the row of teammates lined up at the fence; all eyes watch in anticipation. Once the ball is in action, everyone watches nervously, eyes wide fro

Courtesy of VHHS RISE Instagram RISE (Rebels Impact Through Service and Engagement) is a semester-long, student-led fundraiser through Youth Leadership that raises over $200,000 each year for the Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology Program at the O’Neal Cancer Center at UAB. For 8 years, RISE has supported the least funded age group of cancer patients and is the sole supporter of this program at UAB. This year, students raised $217,332, an increase from last year, and partic

All Photo Credits: Ruth Graham Our Vestavia Singers have had a great season. They hosted a successful Contempo at home, placed third in their division at the Hoover Showchoir Smackdown, scored second at the Albertville Diamond Classic, and landed third again at King of the Mountain—a special shoutout to Mary Pitts for winning best female performer! But honestly, show choir deserves respect and applause from the entire student body, not just this article. It might be one of

Photo Credits: Lily Xie The media below contains the opinion of an individual student and therefore does not represent or speak to the values of Vestavia Hills High School and Vestavia Hills City Schools . Even though we’ve experienced of Vestavia’s coldest weather recently, many juniors and seniors at VHHS are already looking forward to a classic spring tradition: prom! From setting up groups to finding the dress, booking restaurant reservations to planning afterparties, a

Photo Credits: Claire Placzek New Orleans doesn’t know what’s coming for them, as French 5 from VHHS makes their entrance in The Big Easy. In order to learn more about French and Creole culture, French 5 went on a trip to New Orleans, where they would take part in learning about the culture, food, and history of New Orleans--a time filled with laughter, joy, and tours for native French speakers, as well as multiple visits to the original Cafe Dupont (where the beignets ri

Vestavia Hills Track and Field at the CrossPlex in Bessemer The Vestavia Hills Track and Field team delivered an outstanding performance at the CrossPlex Indoor Track State Meet that took place in Bessemer on January 31, 2026. The girls team claimed State Runner-up, earning 63 points with 9 girls in 17 events; additionally, the boys team, consisting of 12 guys in 16 events, won 4th place with a whopping 70 points! Vestavia Hills’ outstanding track athletes competed in a v

Name: Tanya Athienitis Grade: 12th Fun fact: “I was born in Greece and lived there until second grade.” What’s your biggest hot take: I actually like exam week. If you had a theme song what would it be: Lost by Frank Ocean What’s your roman empire: Sephora Where do you see yourself in five years: “I see myself in medical school five years from now” Name: Isabella Shunnarah Grade: 12th Fun fact: “I speak a little Arabic.” What’s your biggest hot take: “Oh easy, I do

Photo Credits: Linear Collider The Vestavia Hills Sadie Hawkins Dance took place on January 24 at the Civic Center, and it proved to be a huge success despite several obstacles leading up to the event. With unpredictable weather and concerns that the dance might be canceled, many students were unsure what the night would hold. However, thanks to careful planning and strong attendance, the evening turned out to be one of the most memorable school events of the year. This yea

During the spring semester, VHHS is excited for our new season of RISE. Each year, RISE brings students, faculty, and families together to support cancer research at UAB O’Neal Center. During this special season of RISE, it’s important to mark our calendars for some important fundraising dates. First in January, the kickoff assembly featured Olympic-style performances and a torch lighting ceremony. After the kickoff assembly on January 24th, students danced and celebrated a

Photo Credits: Instagram, VHHS Rebel Marching Band at Mud Creek Marching Festival The new year, for many, is a time of self-evaluation and profound hope. The first of January inspires goals and promises of personal refinement (go check out our article on New Year’s Resolutions) and invites an excitement to leave the past year behind. Even so, our most popular anthem for the New Year, originally a Scottish poem, reminds us to step into the future with remembrance and apprecia

Every day, students pass through the hallways rushing to their next classes, leaving for early dismissals, or heading off to practice. In all of this constant movement, it’s easy to stay focused on our own routines without stopping to wonder about the lives unfolding around us. While walking through the school one day, I felt this way about one of the fellow seniors in the class of 2026, Sally Grace Ward. Every single morning, she’s seen walking through the halls with her b