To the readers, contributors, and fellow staff of The Voice.
As I prepare to graduate in one month, this feels like an impossible column to write. After my time serving as an editor and learning to navigate the complexities of layout design, stepping away from this newsroom truly feels like I am leaving a piece of myself behind. For almost 12 years, SSSAS has been a source of community for me, and for the past four, this newspaper has been my second home.
I can still vividly recall the first time I stepped foot into the Design Lab as a wide-eyed freshman. I was filled with an unbounded curiosity, though it was shielded by a fair amount of intimidation as I took my seat among a room full of upperclassmen. As I transitioned from a cub reporter to a sophomore editor, my sense of belonging within these walls deepened. I began to thrive on the copy-editing sessions of deadline days, the tedious but rewarding work of refining an InDesign document, and the collective triumph (and a personal sigh of relief!) that echoed through the room whenever a flawless physical copy finally landed in the front lobby.
Serving as an editor has reminded me that journalism is rarely about the person writing the story; it is about the community that lives within it. As a writer, I have had the absolute privilege of documenting the spirit of SSSAS. I have engaged in deep dives into our successes in the arts and athletics, and more importantly, have had difficult conversations in the Controversial Issue that always challenged me to grow both as a writer and as a person.
Of course, this journey would be nothing without the people who walked it with me. I would like to thank Anne Belevetz and Lucy Palma for welcoming me so warmly into the newsroom and for constantly sharpening my journalistic identity. To Luke Rapallo: Though we only shared one year as co-editors, the headlines we crafted while pacing through the classroom remain some of my favorite memories. To Grace Hendy: We spent three years side-by-side in this newsroom, but I am even more grateful for the last 17 years we have spent as dear friends.
To Ms. McElroy and Mr. Heller: Thank you for trusting me not only to share my own voice but to steward the collective voice of the student body. You taught me how to transform static words on a page into words in motion that have the power to build bridges when there were none. To anyone who has wrestled with a stubborn layout alongside me, I wish you nothing but the best of luck in the years to come.
To the younger students I wish I had more time with, please cherish the chaos. There is truly nothing like the energy in this room. I promise you that when you arrive at the final weeks of senior year, you will find yourself wishing you could only soak up more of it.
Most importantly, I’ve realized that student journalism exists to give us a true stake in our own environment. I hope my legacy at The Voice reflects the idea that our perspectives matter and that we possess the agency to hold the place that raised us accountable. It is the one space where students are not bound by a predefined curriculum, but one where we are actively shaping our own narrative.
Perhaps my greatest pleasure in this farewell is the ability to say, with absolute certainty, that I have full confidence in the future of this newspaper. I leave knowing that next year’s leaders are more than ready to succeed, and I am certain you will flourish in an environment of unwavering support.
Thank you, SSSAS and The Voice, for giving me a place to grow, a reason to lead, and the opportunity to speak freely.
-Ben Booma ‘26
