The first article I ever wrote for The Voice was titled “Spirt Week.” I was an anxious freshman not wanting to make any mistakes in the newsroom, but I still ended up making the biggest mistake you could possibly make as a journalist: misspelling a word in the headline. I wish I could say that was the last mistake I’ve made throughout my four years in journalism, but unlike “Spirt Week,” I don’t regret any of the mistakes I made, since I made them with the best community at St. Stephen’s and St. Agnes right by my side.
Journalism exceeded any expectations I had during the summer leading up to my first year of high school. I had interest in taking the elective because I’ve loved writing ever since the second grade and I thought the class would let me write whatever I wanted, with no exceptions. And from writing about events happening around our campus to teenagers’ usage of porn, I feel like I’ve written it all. Although I’d love to stay for one more year and write about a Saints athletics success or enjoying my classmates’ funny stories, I feel like (or, I hope, at least) my fellow seniors and I have left some sort of foundation for future students in journalism to build off of.
I’d first like to say thank you to Ms. McElroy for continuously encouraging me in and out of the Design Lab and for giving me confidence as I grew to become the writer I am today. Jordin and I will make sure to visit often so we can have more gossip sessions! And a big thank you to Mick for helping me out with stories that I needed convincing were good enough for print. You both helped cut down the number of spelling errors in my articles and made sure that punctuation belonged inside quotations, not out.
Next I want to shout out Jordin, Ben, Rose, and Evan for being the best co-editors I could have asked for. Not only do I work alongside you all in the newsroom, but you guys have become great friends throughout my time in journalism. Charlotte, Ava, Pippa, and Natalie – thank you all for your bright smiles and positive energy! I loved walking into class and seeing you all already excited each and every day. And to the rest of the class, thank you all for making my last year in journalism one to remember. I loved hearing your stories from tech rehearsals to random incidents that happened in the hallways. I’m going to miss you all and this class so much, but I’ll make sure to visit as much as I can! Keep writing what interests you, and keep making a difference in the SSSAS community.
