reporting and writing.
As a writer, I like to explore a variety of categories. I’ve written in each category of our newspaper at least once in order to experience every aspect that journalism has to offer. Last year, my portfolio was a bit Opinions-heavy. This is fine, but as a senior, I wanted to return to writing all categories once again. This year, I’ve written News briefs, A&E reviews, and a couple of Opinions pieces (Editorials).
I don’t have a “favorite” category of story to write, but I find it easiest to write News briefs and Opinions pieces. Though it’s atypical among “pure” journalism types, I find that writing reviews and critiques helps me in developing and defining my voice, which, in turn, helps strengthen my writing voice in other categories like Opinions stories.
In my Features, Opinions, and A&E stories, I like to include various elements of multimedia. You’ll hear me talk about interactivity throughout my portfolio because I believe that as students in an increasingly digitized world, it’s important to continue to break old traditions and be innovative. The Pathfinder was one of the first student newspapers to make the switch from physical to digital, and our goal is not only to continue breaking traditions but to also be a trendsetter for other school newspapers to follow.
When I choose story topics, it’s important that I am able to connect the story back to Parkway West as a school. Whether the story connects back to West through interviews of Parkway West students, faculty, or alumni, or if the story uses Parkway West or Parkway School District to point to a larger discussion, it’s important to keep the focus within our distinct school and district community.
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- My Process -
When I write, there's no telling how long it will take. For example, the majority of the Pathfinder’s October editorial took a little under two days, and I wrote an A&E review on The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill and “They can’t be trusted” in a few hours. Other times, it can take literal months to decide on a topic and the direction I want to take. As a beginning writer, I struggled most with missing deadlines and a lack of motivation. Deadlines were hard for me, especially as I switched over from my CJ1 class as a freshman to my CJ2 class as a sophomore.
In my junior year, I made it my goal to be timely with my stories and pump out a larger amount of quality articles. I published many News, Opinions, and A&E stories well before my deadlines, so I’m proud to say that I’ve grown immensely in the realm of managing to meet deadlines over the years as I’ve been on the Pathfinder team.
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When I first have an idea on a topic, I first research everything I can about the issue. I will do my own online research and then reach out to potential sources to see if there's a story there. If I can create a detailed outline of a story, then I know that I can write a story on the given topic. If not, then it's back to the drawing board. For example, for our December editorial, we were planning to write an editorial about FAFSA; however, there just simply wasn't enough substance, nor was there enough information on how that affects students. Since there was not enough information for an outline, I knew that we had to move on.
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If I am satisfied with the outline that I've created, then I move on to writing questions for the interviewees. Though AI bots can be helpful in some ways, and many journalism organizations are looking toward AI to formulate questions for them, I personally prefer writing my own interview questions. I always ask for name, grade (or title if they are a teacher/faculty member), and public-use pronouns. Then, it's into the questions. I typically ask the informative questions first, to get them out of the way, and then the more open-ended questions. That way, the informative questions serve as the ‘warmup’ part and interviewees will be more willing to open up with the open-ended questions rather than just diving into the deep end of the pool.
When I interview people, I like to make it a conversation. I know that I can become nervous if I'm being interviewed when the interviewer is stiff, so I like to make sure that it's more of a conversation than an interview. I use my interview questions as a guiding tool, not an end-all, be-all. Sometimes, I may use all of the questions, and other times, I do not — it's all dependent on the interview and the person I'm interviewing.
My next steps vary depending on the type of story I write. Generally, though, unless I know exactly where I want to go with my introduction, I save it until the end. Oftentimes, I will end up writing my conclusion first so that I know the essential points that I must hit throughout the body of the story. With News briefs, I can usually just write the story straight through; with Opinions, however, I typically work on conclusions, then interviews, then shape my body text, ending with the introduction. With Features and A&E stories, it varies case-by-case.
I weave multimedia pieces throughout each story, whether that’s an infographic or an interactive graphic or a photo. I’m not the best with visual art, but when I have a vision, then I know I can count on my surrounding team to work with me on it to bring that vision to life.
spotlight stories
features.
news.
opinions.
kakakaka
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2023 Parkway Board Candidate Q&A
Like many other schools, school board races can become quite intense, and that proved no different for Parkway. In order to give voters who live in the district an opportunity to learn more about candidates from the perspective of students who actually were impacted by the school board, I decided to lead the charge with an informative news/feature story that interviewed each candidate.
Click the picture to be taken to the story.
A step to glory: Parkway step team wins national title
Step is an underrated sport, especially among predominantly non-Black populations. Our district step team has been one of the standout points of pride in Parkway, and in the 2022-2023 season, they won every single competition that they entered. As a sport that not only honors Black culture but keeps our pep rallies fun, it was vital that I highlight this underrepresented sport and our district step team’s accomplishments.
Click the picture to be taken to the story.
A bus to nowhere: eliminating the VICC program
“A bus to nowhere” was the first story I’d ever written for journalism, and it is still, to this day, one of my favorites. This story explores the extermination of the Voluntary Interdistrict Choice Corporation (VICC), a desegregation program, in St. Louis as well as the effects that the subsequent lack of diversity would have on our school. This story rippled throughout our community and brought back a conversation about the importance of diversity in our school, as noted by our principals.
Click the picture to be taken to the story.
The pride and culture of Black hair
As a sophomore, “The pride and culture of Black hair” was the first journalism project in which I collaborated with other photographers and student journalists. In this story, I interviewed six students and scheduled photoshoots with them that showed off their unique hairstyles — that was my absolute favorite part of writing this story. I enjoyed adding layers to the story beyond text, and I believe that the photos and the story make for a very cohesive and engaging article.
Click the picture to be taken to the story.
Beyond the statistics: Taking a look at America's "crime capital"
​Prompted by the various stereotypes and misconceptions of St. Louis, “Beyond the statistics” was the first opinion piece I’d ever written. The city of St. Louis has its problems, sure, but I noticed that there was a large sentiment against St. Louis by people who didn’t even live there. I also noticed that when people attack St. Louis, they don’t understand how a history of redlining and economic turmoil has shaped St. Louis into the city it is today. In order to fill in the gaps, I wrote “Beyond the statistics.”
Click the picture to be taken to the story.
They can't be trusted: How social media and campaign ads enable misinformation
This article was sparked by incessant political ads on television as well as the rampant general misinformation touted by citizens and candidates alike. In St. Louis particularly, the campaigns were so misleading that some candidates weren’t even running on their true platforms anymore. In order to call out this misinformation, I wrote this article that highlights exactly how social media and campaign ads can and do harm voters.
Click the picture to be taken to the story.
The vilification of Black history is exactly why we need it
In February, I was flabbergasted at the number of people who genuinely believed that Critical Race Theory was being taught in public school, while politicians — like Fla. governor Ron DeSantis — stoked these claims without hesitation. Black history is vital to a well-rounded curriculum, not just because it’s often been neglected in the past, but because it is a part of American history. I wrote this piece to not only inform and correct the misconceptions of CRT and the school curriculum but also to urge various organizations in our school to participate in Black history year-round, not just in February.
Click the picture to be taken to the story.
Año nuevo, vida nueva
This was a Features story about a then-freshman student who immigrated from Cuba to the U.S. as a child. It was fascinating hearing her experience - she had so much to say about the topic; we talked for hours during the interview - and I was proud to be able to portray her story through this article. I used the saying "Año nuevo, vida nueva" as the title because it perfectly encapsulates that her new beginning was a chance to have new opportunities, which is a theme that she reiterates throughout the story.
Click the picture to be taken to the story.
The price of unequal education: Systemic discrimination perpetuates educational disparities in schools across St. Louis metro
For this story, I conducted a lot of research to ensure that I was accurately covering the complex history of education in St. Louis. As I’ve become older and have learned to use my voice in civic engagement, I’ve become more aware of the systemic inequities that have not just affected my life, but hundreds of thousands of others’ as well. Educational inequities still run rampant in St. Louis, with thousands of students attending underfunded and under-resourced schools and districts. It was important to me to write this article to reveal these disparities to many communities that may not understand just how apparent, visible, and significant education inequities are.
Click the picture to be taken to the story.
responses.
I’m very appreciative of any feedback, and while that applies to my receptiveness during the editing process, I also really appreciate it when my writing makes an impact on others. My first story “A bus to nowhere” blew up much more than I expected. I had no idea how far my story actually reached until I was at a debate tournament and one of the debaters recognized me as the author of that story two years later. This particular student said that my work contributed to their interest in scholastic journalism. I was touched by this, and it struck me that my writing does have an impact on others — not just people who may be affected by the issues that I cover, but others as well.
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When highlighting inequities and disparities, I also tend to receive a lot of feedback from people who have experienced such prejudice or discrimination. I feel fortunate to be able to articulate these issues in ways that they can resonate with others. Here are some responses that really resonated with me.
- Locality -
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Many of the Pathfinder’s stories are very local. As a student newspaper, it’s pertinent to disperse information that is important to the community. Because of this, we typically create stories on our student body, local city issues, or state topics. That’s not to say that we don’t create stories on national topics or issues — especially when a national issue has repercussions on the student population across the U.S. — but our News and Features tend to focus on the surrounding community because that’s what the members of our community read the most.
As a writer and reporter, I have developed the skills to discern exactly how to bring stories back to West, whether that’s by interviewing students, faculty, or staff from Parkway West or using data that may mirror a specific issue.
For example, for the editorial I wrote, “To post or not to post,” I took two issues — one on the national level and one on the state level — and narrowed it down to how the main issue, excessive social media use and judgment, affects high school students and Gen Z in particular, and then narrowed it down more by utilizing a faculty member as an interviewee. Part of being a journalist is being able to localize information to a community accurately and determine what really matters to your audience.
- Turnaround Stories -
An essential part of journalism in particular is the ability to produce accurate info and give it to the public as quickly as possible. Last year, my then-adviser introduced “flash stories,” which are stories that typically were produced in one single class period. In the past, I have written and contributed (which includes interviewing, photographing, and editing, to be specific) to many flash stories like “From state to world: Blue Brains Robotics team emerges victorious” and “Community reflects on school safety following a deadly shooting.”
There have been many members of our community astounded at the speed at which we accurately disseminate important news. In fact, a conversation I remember having with a teacher about a particular flash story that had been published earlier that day. He kind of furrowed his eyebrows and squinted his eyes in confusion, saying, “But that information just came out this morning!”
Exactly.
The Pathfinder has a duty to provide their community with accurate information in a timely manner. After all, if the Pathfinder writes about the Glory of Missouri students a week after everyone knows, then it’s not really news anymore, is it? Within the Pathfinder, this is a skill essential for students to learn. Most students — including me — have written at least two turnaround stories measuring a day or less at the EICs’ encouragement.
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- Interviews -
The first interview I conducted was over Zoom during my Convergence Journalism 1 class. I was a freshman, soaking up all of the information that my adviser gave us, while sitting at a desk in the corner of my bedroom. I still have the audio recording and the notes that I took that I would develop into a lead. Building on those skills has allowed me to interview confidently and successfully, no matter if it’s over Zoom or in person.
In one of my pieces, at the end of the editing process, my adviser had this to say about the quotes in my story: “The interviews and quotes are incredibly impactful. You are a skilled interviewer. Rich conversations are evident within this piece. Every time you wove in a new voice, all I could think about was WOW.” The work to get this response is incredibly purposeful. I don’t just ask questions, I have a conversation with each of my sources. For one of my longest stories, “The price of unequal education,” I interviewed one of the sources for two hours. We just kept talking and talking and talking because it was just like having a phone call with a friend.
Of course, I know how to keep it punctual if needed. I understand that brevity can be important, especially when interviewing students or faculty members during school hours, and have also worked to be able to hold discussions with students to get all of the key details in a short amount of time.
- Collaboration -
The Pathfinder is made up of a small staff — we began the year with around 26 CJ2-CJ4 students, and currently have around 23, since some students graduated or have moved on from the program. Some people may believe that this might be easier than a huge staff of 60+ students. Truthfully, I wouldn’t necessarily know because I don’t have an accurate frame of reference. In any case, though, it’s still definitely not easy. In order to qualify for many of the awards that we apply for, we must have consistency, we must have quality work, and we must have impact. The consistency component of our newspaper means that our writers often must make up for our lack of staffpower with an increase of stories that they write. The editors and Editors-in-Chief often are working together to make sure that all three of these components are met.
Among such a small staff, the ability to collaborate is especially crucial on all fronts. Whether a student is a staff writer, editor, or EIC, everyone has something to contribute and it’s essential to both give and take to and from the journalism program to continue the great work of the Pathfinder as a student newspaper. I have taken photos for stories and have asked others to take photos for me. I have written captions for other stories and have had people write captions for me. I have jumped onto others’ stories in order to ensure that a story meets its deadline and other people have taken time to help me with mine. It is truly a team effort to schedule and continuously post stories, but the Pathfinder has proven to be able to keep pace with many larger schools both in the state and across the nation, largely, in part, due to our excellent skill of collaboration.
Larger than the Pathfinder, the actual journalism program itself is called Convergence Journalism, and one thing that the current EICS have attempted to do is bridge the gap between the yearbook (Paweshi) and newspaper programs. This year, we created a Journalism 2023-2024 group chat so that staff members from both programs can easily share information and questions. There are many times that we use Paweshi’s photos, and many times that they use our feature stories for the yearbook, so having effective ways for communication is vital.
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One specific memory that comes to mind when discussing collaboration was a project for my story “The pride and culture of Black hair.” Being a headstrong sophomore desperate to prove that I could write more than one great story, I had been deadset on having a photo gallery of students in our school showcasing their hair. There was one problem — I had never been great with photography since I hadn’t ever really learned how to use a camera. Looking back, it probably would’ve been easier to take the photos myself, but instead, I assembled a group of photographers with different photography styles to take the photos for me. Well, “for me” isn’t very accurate. What I did was give the photographers my Pinterest board of what I wanted the photos to look like and then followed both them and the subject outside (where we took all of the pictures) to direct the photoshoot. I spoke to the subjects while they were being photographed, which resulted in varying facial reactions and angles of the subjects’ hair. It was super fun and I’m grateful for all of the photographers putting their best work forward for my ambitious, but successful, concept. Collaboration was key in that project, and is just one example of how collaborative environments are essential to producing great content. The saying is true — teamwork really does make the dream work!