The student-run news site of H. B. Plant High School

PHS News
The student-run news site of H. B. Plant High School

PHS News
The student-run news site of H. B. Plant High School

PHS News
Stella Griggs

Stella Griggs, Editor-in-Chief

Hi! I’m Stella, a senior, and the Editor-in-Chief of the Newspaper this year! I love spending time with my family and friends, and I am excited for one last year at Plant!

All content by Stella Griggs
In recent days, Florida's House of Representatives is considering passing a bill that will severely cut educational funding. The bill was introduced on April 1 and will be debated within the coming weeks.

Florida House Proposes A Slash in Education Funding

Stella Griggs, Sports Editor
April 3, 2025
: Throughout her three years at Plant High School, junior Fiyori Russom has been active in academics, athletics, and extracurricular activities. Heading into her senior year, Russom expressed her love for Plant High and her intention to continue participating in all her activities.

Life at Plant: Fiyori Russom

Stella Griggs, Sports Editor
April 4, 2025
On Sunday, March 2, the 97th annual Academy Awards took place at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. During the ceremony, the Academy thanked Los Angeles firefighters for their contributions to ending the wildfires.

The Oscars Review

Stella Griggs, Sports Editor
March 7, 2025
Empty shelves at a local grocery store highlight the global scarcity of eggs. The avian flu began to spread in 1997, but contamination levels have grown significantly since the first outbreak.

Egg Prices Reach New Highs As Number of Bird Flu Cases Rise

Stella Griggs, Sports Editor
February 25, 2025
Throughout its 75-year history, Formula One has broken racing records, but it has recently expanded its influence on television. Season seven of 'Formula One: Drive to Survive' will be released March 7.

Drive to Survive Season Seven Is On the Way

Stella Griggs, Sports Editor
February 21, 2025
On Thursday, Jan. 30, the Beta Honor Society held its annual induction for new members. Current Beta members and Plant High School graduates spoke to the inductees during the ceremony.

Beta Honor Society Inducts a New Class

Stella Griggs, Sports Editor
February 6, 2025
Onyx Storm, the third book in Rebecca Yarros' Empyrean series, was released Tuesday, Jan. 21. The first two books of the series, Fourth Wing and Iron Flame, were released in 2023.

Onyx Storm Strikes the Bookshelves

Stella Griggs, Sports Editor
January 30, 2025
On Thursday, Jan. 9, the Tampa Bay Lightning faced the Boston Bruins at Amalie Arena for their last home game before a three-game road series. The Lightning won 4-1.

Tampa Bay Lightning Faceoff Against the Boston Bruins

Stella Griggs, Sports Editor
January 13, 2025
On Sunday, Jan. 5, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers faced the New Orleans Saints in a must-win game to secure a spot in the 2024 NFL playoffs. The Bucs won, earning a wild-card berth.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers Tackles the New Orleans Saints

Stella Griggs, Sports Editor
January 8, 2025
Many people have been affected by the Ticketmaster "battle." Artists such as Taylor Swift, Gracie Abrams, and Sabrina Carpenter have worked with Ticketmaster to provide ticketing for their fans.

The Ticketmaster Battle: Is It Worth the Fight?

Stella Griggs, Sports Editor
January 6, 2025
Students study for the upcoming ACT using one of the approved graphing calculators. The most recent ACT took place on Oct. 26 at various locations nationwide

How to Prepare for the ACT

Stella Griggs, Sports Editor
December 13, 2024
Tampa Theatre's design features Spanish-style architecture, displaying the rich history of Tampa, Florida. The theater's Nora-vember feature series began on Nov. 10.

Tampa Theatre Takes on November in a Classic Way

Stella Griggs, Sports Editor
November 21, 2024
In recent years, homecoming traditions have begun to vary, such as the switch from corsages to bouquets. In the United States, most homecoming dances occur in September and October.

The History of Homecoming

Stella Griggs, Sports Editor
December 6, 2024
David Shaw, the lead singer of the Revivalists, sings to the audience at Pig Jig on Nov. 3. The Revivalists performed right before Dierks Bentley, the festival’s headliner, took the stage for his set.

Tampa’s Pig Jig Hits Its 13th Year of Raising Money for Kidney Disease

Stella Griggs, Sports Editor
November 12, 2024
Two-week-old puppies born at Mercyfull Animal Shelter are shown. The puppies' mother was surrendered to the shelter after hurricanes Helene and Milton.

Mercy for Mercifull

Ella Reeves and Stella Griggs
November 6, 2024
Audrey Roberts (9) finishes her tee shot at a match against Alonso High School on Oct. 1. Roberts broke 40 at the match with a final score of 39 strokes through nine holes.

Tee-ing it Up at Plant: A Feature on Audrey Roberts

Stella Griggs, Sports Editor
October 3, 2024
Seniors gather in the school parking lot for their final Adam Sandler Day at Plant High. Adam Sandler Day started Plant’s fall Homecoming week.

Plant High School Takes on Spirit Week

Stella Griggs, Sports Editor
September 20, 2024
Katherine Touger, 12, waves to the crowd during the varsity football game against Robinson on Sept. 6. Touger was named captain of the cheer team for the 2024-2025 season.

Cheer Peps Up Plant

Stella Griggs, Sports Editor
September 12, 2024
Senior Liv Lambert prepares a serve for the Steinbrenner Warriors to receive. Lambert would help lead her team to victory at Wednesday’s game.

Plant Volleyball Serves Steinbrenner with a Win

Emerson Crews and Stella Griggs
August 21, 2024
The 2023 Miami Grand Prix marked the second year that the sunny city hosted a race. Leading up to the third, drivers will attempt to take reigning champion Max Verstappen’s crown. 

Welcome to Miami: Formula One Returns

Stella Griggs, Social Media Editor
May 3, 2024
Senior Alex Sanchez leaped over his first hurdle to lead the race. Sanchez will go on to win his hurdle event.

Plant Track Takes on Riverview for Senior Night

Stella Griggs, Social Media Editor
April 25, 2024
Summer is approaching, meaning that ice cream will become a daily staple. To learn about the best ice cream shops in Tampa, continue reading.

Five Ice Cream Spots in Tampa

Stella Griggs, Social Media Editor
April 24, 2024
The seniors on the Girls Tennis Team posed for a picture to commemorate their time spent on the team. Plant would go on to win the match five-two against their rivals.

Girls Tennis Serves Robinson on Senior Night

Stella Griggs, Staffer
April 4, 2024
Juliette Selman (10) stood next to her NICU as it had just been opened. Juliette’s NICU is thriving with young animals, and it is saving lives every day.

Juliette Selman Goes for the Gold

Stella Griggs, Staffer
April 3, 2024
Harrison Hirsch (11) fought his opponents for possession of the ball throughout the game. Hirsch is a midfielder for the Lacrosse Team.

Plant Lacrosse Sticks a Win Against Newsome

Stella Griggs, Staffer
April 1, 2024
Junior Ashlyn Bell exited the tunnel ready to dominate St. Regis Jesuit. In the game, Bell scored her 100th goal with Plant Lacrosse.

Checking in With Plant Girls Lacrosse

Ellianna Valkenburg and Stella Griggs
March 25, 2024
Plant Anchor Club members volunteered at Relay for Life on March 2. The club will sell a variety of snacks to help raise money for cancer. 

Plant Anchor Club Takes on Relay for Life

Stella Griggs, Staffer
March 6, 2024
On Feb. 24, 2022, the war between Russia and Ukraine started. Two years later, the war continues costing both civilian and military lives.

Two Years Later: Russia versus Ukraine

Stella Griggs, Staffer
February 28, 2024
Posing in front of the Disney Fantasy, Sydney smiles while in the British Virgin Islands with her family for winter break.

Life at Plant: Sydney Appleton

Stella Griggs, Staffer
February 23, 2024
Getting ready to serve, Sophomore Brinley Vanaelst focuses on the ball. Vanaelst won her match against Leto 6-1.

Plant Tennis Starts the Season with an Ace

Stella Griggs and Ellianna Valkenburg
February 14, 2024
Youth flew by far too quickly. Rewatching some Disney Princess movies may help to ease some of the nostalgia.

Disney Princess Movies: 10 of the Best

Stella Griggs, Staffer
January 31, 2024
The Emmys occurred on Monday, Jan. 15, and had Anthony Anderson as a host. The next major award show is the Grammys on Feb. 4, 2024.

The 2023 Emmys: In 2024

Stella Griggs, Staffer
January 25, 2024
Junior Ellianna Valkenburg (right) interviewed Senior Sydney Appleton for the Panther Pawdcast. The second episode of Ellianna’s podcast is currently in production.

Life at Plant: Ellianna Valkenburg

Stella Griggs, Staffer
January 9, 2024
Many movies throughout different periods in history show the Christmas spirit. Read about five favorites in the article.

Five Cozy Christmas Movies to Watch This Holiday Season

Stella Griggs, Staffer
December 6, 2023
Cantonis makes a chip shot after a long drive. Charlotte will go on to finish one-over par at this match. 

War Eagle on the Way: Charlotte Cantonis

Stella Griggs, Staffer
November 15, 2023
Taylor Swift released her new album on Oct. 27. The album included five vault tracks, elaborating further on the singer/songwriter’s emotions during the time of the original album release.          

Another Taylor Swift Album? Nine Reasons to Listen to 1989 (Taylor’s Version)

Stella Griggs, Staffer
November 6, 2023
Plant Anchor Club poses for a picture after decorating car trunks. The service members will hand out candy to kids later in the evening.

Trunk or Treat: Anchor Club Helps with Halloween Fun

Stella Griggs, Staffer
October 30, 2023
Swinging into Plant Golf Senior Night

Swinging into Plant Golf Senior Night

Stella Griggs, Staffer
October 23, 2023
Spirit Week Recap

Spirit Week Recap

Stella Griggs, Lola Magin, and Giada Moralejo
October 12, 2023
Senior Caroline Ogle takes a practice swing with her driver. This occurred at a previous match against Steinbrenner in which the girls and boys took home a win.

Plant Varsity Golf Versus Robinson

Stella Griggs, Staffer
October 5, 2023
Plant Golf Swings Into the New Season

Plant Golf Swings Into the New Season

Stella Griggs, Staffer
September 11, 2023
Plant Volleyball Strikes into Varsity Season

Plant Volleyball Strikes into Varsity Season

Bella Johnson and Stella Griggs
September 7, 2023
As Tropical Storm Idalia is approaching rapidly, everyone must prepare for the storm. Scroll to learn more details about the storm and how to prepare.

Everything You Need To Know About Tropical Strom Idalia

Stella Griggs, Staffer
August 28, 2023
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