Writing and Reporting
This piece was one of my first that was published in one of my publication's print issues. Even though it isn't a recent work, I chose to include it in this portfolio because I distinctly remember it being a major step forward in my growth as a new journalist. I learned how to localize world events -- in this case, the invasion of Afghanistan by the Taliban -- by interviewing community teachers and writing about their work with refugees in our town.
One of the things I prioritize most in my journalism is providing context for everything, and I believe that this piece about Ann Arbor's bicentennial is a good representation of that ideal. I wrote about the various celebrations that would be taking place in the city, but I also made sure to include research about the origins of the city, and how Native American influence lay the groundwork for its founding.
For this piece, I interviewed an administrator that was going to be leaving as a result of a $20 million budget deficit in my school district, along with the new administrator that was set to take his place. His departure in particular sparked a lot of concern and curiosity among students, so it was important to me to convey the full story of the impacts of the budget deficit on familiar faces in my school community.
Kent Overbey was a significant figure at my high school for many reason -- he was the boys' cross country coach for over four decades, and was the only person left at the school that had also been part of the school's original staff at its founding. I wanted to capture the full depth of his impact in this piece, by including interviews with former and current athletes, and the assistant coach of the cross country team. The main challenge in writing this piece was actually simply making contact with Mr. Overbey, as he had moved out of the state and was no longer checking emails, and wasn't answering my texts either. However, I was eventually able to contact him by calling him from one of his athletes' phones.
For this piece, my co-Editor-in-Chief and I interviewed each of the 6 school board candidates for the 2024 election. Especially given that it was the first election after the $20 million school board budget deficit, and many members of the community felt that there was a lack of transparency from the board, I wanted to interview and write about each of the candidates in detail. The process gave me a lot of insight into how school board elections work, and the kinds of things that candidates have to do to promote themselves, but I also learned how to set boundaries as a student interviewer. Several interviewees asked us questions that didn't feel entirely appropriate given the situation, and learning how to shift the conversation back to the premise of the interview was an important lesson. I was also able to do research about the national election, and connect both local and federal policies back to their potential impacts on high school students.
This piece represents a lot of growth as both a journalistic writer but also as a leader. There were some communication issues that led to this piece needing to be written in a very short amount of time, and I'm proud of how my co-Editor-in-Chief and I were able to secure interviews and report on such a serious and important topic in that condensed time frame. From a leadership aspect, I learned to check in with the writers of each issue more frequently, and ensure that I convey that I am always available to help anybody if they need it.
This was a piece I was especially proud of, because it gave me experience in two aspects of journalism that I don't often have the chance to practice: photography and interviewing people on the spot, without a chance to prepare questions. I also learned a lot about the injustice regarding a lack of transparency from our board of education that are unfortunately a reality for many teachers around the country, and grew to further understand how crucial it is to report on matters such as this one, which affect all members of our community -- from students to teachers alike. Only from being educated about what is happening can people realize why they should care.