Skip to Main Content
The online home of the Central Focus

FHCtoday.com

The online home of the Central Focus

FHCtoday.com

The online home of the Central Focus

FHCtoday.com

Five phones show a selection of social media app icons. These apps are among the most popular sites for students.

Swipe for the Scoop

Nadia Moore, Staff Reporter October 22, 2025

After a long day of school, junior Victoria Anderson was working on piles of homework in her bed after school when she received an alarming CNN alert stating republican influencer Charlie Kirk had been...

Dr. Robert Gaugh works at his desk. Gaugh is serving as interim principal this school year while the district has been roiled by issues surrounding the hiring and departure of Superintendent Mike Dominguez, who only worked for a month in FHSD and then was given $230,000 as part of a separation agreement.

Rebuilding Trust

Michael Purcell, Staff Reporter October 18, 2025

The Francis Howell School District is under fire once more for the controversy surrounding the superintendent position and the hastened hiring and sudden departure of Dr. Mike Dominguez.  Leading into...

A student concentrates on sketching a photograph in art class. The class has been working on drawing inspiration from photos.

Ai vs. traditional art, whose side are you on?

Chloe Biondo, Staff Reporter October 7, 2025

While artificial intelligence can be an efficient tool for gaining or processing information, it's a difficult topic for the art community. Some support its use to avoid art block by gaining inspiration...

Chris Allen teaches students in the HOSA seminar about different insects that can harm people with Alpha Gal. They did various seminars, activities and presentations on tick borne illnesses.

Silver Success

Nadia Moore, Staff Reporter October 2, 2025

This summer, a team of students from HOSA attended the state conference and successfully earned second place. The stars of it all, Chris Allen, Kaitlyn Belina, and Lucas Ostermeyer, took the medal with...

Mrs. Sarah LaRue, an English teacher, speaks out to the crowd during her commencement speech, encouraging greatness from the new inductees. The current board members, Dr. Suzanne Leake, and the incoming board members sat behind the podium to listen to the speech with admiration.

A New Generation of Leaders

Mallory Davie, Staff Photographer May 20, 2025

The National Honor Society is a group of intelligent, driven individuals who follow the four pillars: scholarship, service, leadership, and character, to which the organization is based. On April 30,...

Senior Carrie Byrne sits on her phone during her third period AP Psychology class. In an email to district staff and families, an new phone policy was announced to "reduce distractions in the classroom."

FHSD releases new cell phone policy for 2025-26 school year

Hannah Halterman, Web Co Editor-in-Chief May 8, 2025

The Francis Howell School District announced a new policy regarding cell phone use for the 2025-2026 school year, listing partial restrictions for high schools and a full restriction for elementary and...

Amy Gryder speaks about her experience within a corporate workplace and how that will affect her actions within the school board. Gryder ran alongside Oelke, one of the main issues they cover being DEI, or inclusivity of all students. Photo by Summer Suarez.

Amy Gryder and Sarah Oelke declared winners of 2025 Board election

Thomas Ramos, Print Assignments Editor April 10, 2025

 Candidates Amy Gryder and Sarah Oelke have been entered as the two new board member-elects, after the final votes were tallied on April 8. Current Board Vice President Randy Cook and fellow candidate...

Seniors Luke Paulus and Aadit Mehta discuss a piece of evidence. The two debate partners have had a successful season, placing at many tournaments.

The State of Debate

Lillian Richter, Staff Reporter April 2, 2025

It’s Friday afternoon, and the Francis Howell Central speech and debate team pulls out of the school, preparing themselves for yet another speech-filled weekend. The team has spent weeks preparing for...

Freshman Lucas Ostermeyer and sophomores Chris Allen and Kaitlyn Belina stand from left to right, respectively, in front of their "Fight the Bite!" presentation advocating and fostering awareness for tick-borne illnesses. The team will present to a panel of judges at the State Leadership Conference in Rolla, MO, on Monday, March 24. Photo courtesy of Chris Allen

‘Fight the Bite!’ to compete at the State Leadership Conference

Colin Nichols, Web Co-Editor-in-Chief March 22, 2025

Ticks are critters people don’t often think about — loose messages circulate: “Don’t forget to check yourself,” and “They carry diseases,” — but frequently, the threat of ticks are...

Sarah LaRue smiles as students in her AP Literature and Composition class share their opinions on poems. During their own version of March Madness, the class reviewed 32 poems and put them against one another in a bracket: choosing between which ones were their favorites or which were the most complex.

Teachers: Literature Likes and Dislikes

Sydney Ross, Staff Reporter March 19, 2025

Everyone expects English teachers to have a favorite book — that’s a given. Some even have a hard time deciding which is their favorite. Passion about literature can be found in most English teachers,...

A student goes on TikTok as they do their school work. TikTok has often been criticized for deteriorating the attention spans of adolescents, negatively affecting their overall mental health. 
(Photo by Isabella Dunlap)

May We Have a Verdict?

Donya Ihmoud, Staff Reporter March 14, 2025

Devoted American users of one of the most widely used social media platforms, TikTok, were unfortunate to find their feed interrupted by a pop-up stating that the app was unavailable. On Jan. 18, 2025,...

The official new logo for the Front and Central podcast, created by Ian Rashleigh.

Front and Central Ep 13: Roll With it!

Ian Rashleigh, Podcast Editor March 14, 2025

This week on FHC's official podcast and comedically-themed talk show, the crew brings in senior Edward Wilson to talk about his experiences in Games Club, as well as a deep dive into the wonder of the...

Load More Stories
Donate to FHCtoday.com
$1784
$1500
Contributed
Our Goal