Aarohi Motwani is a senior and an Editor in Chief for The Blaze. This is her third year on staff, and she loves to take pictures and interview people in the student body. In her free time, she enjoys reading, listening to music on her roof, and watching movies with her friends.

Tanishka Enugu is a senior and this is her fourth year on The Blaze staff! A passionate writer who appreciates the community the newspaper brings, she loves being able to represent the student body through the paper. Tanishka is also a huge history buff who strives to engage in all things related to the subject through her role as president of both t...

James Bowles is a senior and is the Managing Editor for The Blaze. In his third year on the paper staff, he still thoroughly enjoys his experience working with everyone associated with The Blaze, and wouldn’t give it up for just about anything. When he compared his previous experience with the student paper as a staff writer versus his current posit...

Shivu Sathe is a valued member of staff, always fast and efficient when it comes to editing articles in her role as News Editor. She’s always liked writing, so it was no surprise that she found a home in newspaper and journalism. Although she’s already beginning to prepare for her life as a college student, she enjoys staying active and up to date i...

Sruthi Vivek is a sophomore and this is her second year on “The Blaze” staff. She is the Sports Editor, and she’s looking forward to all of the amazing things that the staff will accomplish this year. Sruthi plays for the Rock Ridge varsity basketball team, and she loves sports in general. She loves going to football games and hanging out with her ...

Ananya is a junior, and joined The Blaze staff  in her sophomore year. She is currently the Arts and Entertainment Editor, and she loves writing articles about events occurring in Rock Ridge. Her love of reading and writing, which began when she was little, only grew as she got older, and she quickly gained an interest in writing reviews. Now, she ho...

Lucian Tiller is a junior who has always liked reading about news and current events, and he thinks that it’s important for people to stay up to date about things that can impact them. Despite challenging deadlines, he also likes how the newspaper provides a service for the school, encouraging staffers to write about what they like. As Opinion Edit...

Bhargav is a junior and the Photo Editor on The Blaze. When he's not mountain biking, he's doing homework, playing basketball, or hanging out with his friends. His favorite food is homemade mashed potatoes with gravy. He joined the newspaper to be more involved in the inner workings of Rock Ridge. He's looking forward to the year and the exciting ne...

Sydney Nguyen is a senior and the Design Editor for The Blaze. While creating and designing spreads for the newspaper is one of Sydney’s favorite parts, they also enjoy writing articles. This year, Syd is most looking forward to AP Literature. In the coming year, Sydney plans to go to college and major in computer science while still continuing her hobb...

Melissa Waas is a junior who is the Video Editor for The Blaze. Waas has a place in her heart for making films with her two sisters, who also love to make craft and movie projects.  Originally from France, Waas moved in 8th grade, and she loves being part of the Rock Ridge community, where she is also involved in PEER and is one of the WINGS mentors...

Shaila Patel is a senior in her second year on the newspaper staff, fueled by her strong sense of curiosity. Since a young age, Patel has been aiding people close to her. Whether it be through PEER or through daily actions, she is passionate about helping strangers, close friends, and family who are struggling in any way, but especially with any me...

Rachel Adams is a senior. This is her third year on staff, and she is one of the Website Coordinators. She is part of the girls tennis team and the theater program. Her favorite hobbies include baking, hiking, crocheting, and reading. Her favorite books are murder mysteries, but she loves all genres. When she graduates high school, she hopes to get i...

Maya Coleman is a junior and this is her second year on “The Blaze.” She is the Business Manager and is excited for another year on the school newspaper! Ever since she was younger, she’s loved to write, and it’s something she believes she will always be very passionate about. She is a part of Rock Ridge Sings as another elective, and in her...

Sitwat is a junior, and the Graphics Editor for the Newspaper. She enjoys art and is excited to create graphics for the staff this year. When she’s not frantically worrying about school, you can find her listening to music, spending time with her family, and eating. She is probably the most unathletic person you will ever meet, and has the memory a...

Rachel Bhardwaj is a freshman, this is her first year in Newspaper. "I'm excited for this year," Bhardwaj said. Some of her interests and hobbies include drawing, writing fictional pieces, and listening to music. In her freetime, Bhardwaj likes to play badminton with family and friends.

Azciel Goodhart is a sophomore and this is their first year on staff. In their free time, they enjoy swimming, knitting, and crocheting. They found their love for crocheting in 5th grade when they wanted to create a baby blanket for their teacher. Goodhart participates in the crew and swim team at Rock Ridge, as well as the philosophy club. They al...

Francisco Rodriguez is a freshman staff writer for The Blaze, and it is his first year on staff. He wanted to join the school newspaper because he saw a particular interest in the class and likes reading about current events as well as keeping up with the news. Although temporarily injured, Francisco loves playing soccer, being with his family and frien...

Maddie Nyman is a senior, and this is her second year on The Blaze. She enjoys working on The Blaze because she can focus on one of her favorite things: writing. She is starting her third year of running indoor and outdoor track on the Rock Ridge team, and is co-president of Chapter 9 ¾ of National English Honor Society. When not in school, Maddie enjo...

Arnav Mahajan is a freshman and it's his first year on the newspaper staff. He joined the newspaper because he has a strong passion for writing, which he uses to express himself. His main style of writing is argument and opinion-based pieces. He's looking forward to getting good work done and meeting the rest of the staff. When he’s not writing, he enj...

Leif Labianca is in his senior year of high school, and is a first year staff writer on The Blaze. Throughout Labiance’s life, music has been a part of it. His earliest memory with music is him listening to and understanding the lyrics, rhythm, melody, and meaning of each song. One lyrical artist that comes to Labiance’s mind first when thinking about ...

Danielle is a sophomore and this is her first year on staff. In her free time, she loves sleeping whenever she gets the chance. She also watches anime and recently finished “Chainsaw Man,” and enjoys playing the guitar, which she has been doing for six years. She enjoys all genres of music, except country, and her favorite album is “HOPE” by...

Rodrigue is a junior and happy to be rejoining The Blaze this year after hitting a pause during sophomore year. He describes himself as funny, smart and interesting, and his drive to pursue activities  ‘just because why not?’ has led him to join a multitude of Rock Ridge’s in-school and after school clubs. Depending on the athletic season, Rod...

Sam Cho is a senior in his first year on the Newspaper staff. He decided to join because he wanted to become a part of a new source at Rock Ridge. As of right now, Cho is part of the SCA, where he helps organize events such as prom, pep rallies, and homecoming. He is part of the lacrosse team as a long stick middie. He is looking forward to graduatin...

Riya Cherukuri is a sophomore and a first year staffer on The Blaze. In her free time, Cherukuri enjoys baking desserts. Cherukuri also spends her time playing softball for Rock Ridge. She was motivated to play because her brother played baseball, so being on the field felt just right. Cherukuri hopes to continue playing in college....

Diya Chand is a senior this year, and a new staff writer to The Blaze. Her time in the Art and Lit Mag club here at Rock Ridge helped lead her to Newspaper. Now, she is looking forward to taking pictures, interviewing, and improving her graphic design. Diya also has interests in the medical field, hoping to join the Red Cross Club, potentially train t...

Ria Athreya is a junior and a first-year staff writer for The Blaze. She hopes to gain more confidence in interviewing and improve her speaking skills throughout her experience with the newspaper. She is also excited to write articles for the newspaper, especially about art and soccer. She looks forward to her new classes this year, like AP Biology, and...

Dayanna is a sophomore in her first year on staff. In her free time, Dayanna watches videos on YouTube and plays video games. She is very open to playing all types of video games, such as Roblox with her friends. Dayanna is hoping to re-join Key Club again this year. Dayanna is also part of a program called Campus, where she gets to know more about Col...

Nadia Shirr is a junior and this is her second year on The Blaze. She joined so she could have a more fun, and chill class. When there's a new event to cover, she likes to write about it so she can give her perspective on the topic. Shirr has also been involved in crew for the last two years. Shirr would like to go out of state for college, but is st...

Sophomore Muhammad Reda is a returning member of The Blaze as a Staff Writer. He enjoys photography, which is a major reason for his interest in Newspaper. Outside of school, Muhammed enjoys reading and listening to all types of music. Muhammad’s main goal this school year is to thrive and do better than he did the previous year. . Muhammed enjoy...

Samantha Chang is a sophomore in her second year of staff. An artist and writer from a young age, she has decided to continue working on the newspaper due to the positive experience and friendships she made in her first year. Samanatha has many hobbies, such as painting, writing, and her newfound favorite, krav maga. In school, she’s a dedicated ...

Aline is a junior at Rock Ridge High School and this is her second year on staff. Aline joined newspaper because she has a deep passion for journalism and plans to pursue a career in this field. Aline also has an interest in the law field and would also like to become a lawyer. Aline has many hobbies ranging from reading, drawing, painting, to playing...

Jackson is a senior and this is his third year on staff. In his free time, he likes to wrestle and hang out with his friends. Jackson also loves music and his favorite artists are Bladee and Yung Lean. One thing Jackson loves to do is make people laugh and he is really funny and good looking.

Bella Gerardi is a junior and this is her third year on staff. She has always enjoyed writing and found a passion in it specifically in middle school.  In the future, she plans to go to George Mason and major in Journalism and Communications to continue her passion for writing. Bella plays lacrosse for the school as a defender. Her favorite hobbies include d...

Nidhi is a junior at Rock Ridge and it is her third year as a member of The Blaze. Outside of school, Nidhi enjoys drawing. She prefers to keep her art private, and mostly doodles on work. Her favorite part of school is newspaper, which she actually joined on a whim as a freshman. Her favorite part of newspaper is the design aspect because she gets ...

Hylay Assefa is a junior at Rock Ridge High School and is in his third year on “The Blaze'' staff. He primarily joined the staff due to his passion for reporting and writing news stories. Assefa, who also currently plays soccer for the Rock Ridge soccer team, coaches Loudoun One Soccer for youth boys throughout his community. As a fan of a wide v...