I first became involved in Journalism my sophomore year, when I accidentally joined Yearbook. 

And to be honest, I struggled a lot. 

In fact, I wonder why I never dropped the class when I had the chance.

But despite that, I rejoined my junior year, and I even joined Newspaper for some reason. 

I ended up doing significantly better my junior year, despite adding an extra class.

From the start I enjoyed the process of making a newspaper, writing a story, designing a page. And seeing other students read your work is a very satisfying experience.

So by the end of the school year I decided to only take Newspaper as a senior.

I was originally nervous at the beginning of my senior year. It felt awkward taking a leading role in the class, especially because I felt the seniors from last year were untouchable.

It also didn’t help that the majority of the class were inexperienced and mostly sophomores in their first year of Journalism.

I was quickly proven wrong – the new staff members quickly learned and grew to become excellent writers and designers.

But I was also surprised at my own growth and leadership skills.

I was impressed with my improved design skills and I enjoyed taking on bigger stories and helping underclassmen with their work.

Our Newspaper class this year was small but tight-knit and well organized, and I enjoyed helping to lead in every issue we did.

Both my junior and senior years of Newspaper were strikingly different, but they both were highlights of my high school experience.