by Zyania Garcia Hernández

As the school year comes to an end, some things that may have started off as small and unimportant become special parts of student life. For many staff members, Journalism Club created a way to increase writing knowledge and push to meet deadlines.

Mr. Matt Mayse is the Journalism Club advisor of the Journalism Club as well as a teacher for Honoros English IV, CP English IV and AP Literature and Composition at Southeast Alamance High School. Prior to joing the Southeast community, Mayse taught the Leadership and Media class at Green Hope High School. While at Green Hope, the staff of "The GH Falcon" online newspaper publishing the online newspaper which went on to be the top ranking school newspaper based on "School Newspapers Online" for two years in a row. 

When Mayse came to Southeast, he knew there was no class devoted to journalism, so he decided to start a club hoping to get 10 people to show up. By the second meeting, there were more than 28 students showing interest in being on the staff. Staff member William Rogers showed the impact of the club and Mr. Mayse. “It’s super fun and he's very encouraging for students to express themselves and write about a variety of topics," Rogers said

While members of the staff (Mayse insists on calling the club members staffers), students can write articles, create podcasts and publish phot galleries. The articles can be found on the official website: thedailytrot.com. Students meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays during WIN Time to brainstorm and write in order to publish their stories as soon as possible. 

The administration and Mr. Eric Yarbrough helped with the creation of the journalism club by linking the website to the school newsletter that went to parents every week. Mayse went on to recognize Mr. Tim Johnson for getting the club involved in podcasting. Writing, and specifically journalistic writing, broadens skills and teaches writers about a world beyond the school. In order to be successful, the staff had to focus on working together. “I like the club because it is very fun. It allows us to interact with different people. It is a nice and collaborative atmosphere," said Alison Barrera.

The club’s articles have rapidly been spreading around the community and beyond. “I use Google Analytics to see how many views we have for the entire website and for specific articles. This year, we had over 4,000 views,” said Mr. Mayse.

As students continue their journey through high school, the journalism club is a special place for staffers allowing them the ability to learn new writing skills and increase productivity.