Personal Narrative

When you think of journalism, you probably think of a magazine publication, a tv broadcaster, and probably the hustle and bustle of a newspaper room. You might not necessarily think of a girl in the yearbook club. If you asked me two years ago, while I was just starting out on staff, I never would have considered myself a journalist, not even close. I always felt invalidated throughout my career because I wanted to be a part of journalism, but I didn’t feel like I fit the criteria. Now that I am very much a veteran staffer, I have found many ways to express myself through journalism and I am working towards giving the yearbook a little bit more recognition as a publication.

My first year in my career, I was taking an intro class online (because of Covid) and was really struggling to connect with the class. I ended up discovering that photography was the only way for me to feel authentic and creative. After a year of sitting in my room with my camera off and my mic muted, I was anxious to get back to class and join a journalism staff. When I consulted my adviser about the decision I needed to make, he guided me to join the yearbook staff. This was due to my interest in design and photography. Being in the yearbook class was a huge adjustment for me. Covid left me more introverted than ever and I had a really hard time finding a place in the class. Despite that,  I was intrigued by the student-run publication that we were working for and was constantly inspired to do well.

 The beginning of my time on staff was rough-to put it bluntly, with our team being more than behind coming back from the 2020 school year and having the workload of two years on our backs. Something about the intensity and the deadlines left me hungry for accomplishment and excited to see what I would be able to produce. Our staff during this time was very unstable and everyone was quitting. I knew that this meant I would need to step up and that I was in it for the long haul. I received the title of editor-in-chief and knew I needed to completely transform the environment of the publication. 

My main goal starting off my senior year as editor was to make the yearbook a fun place and leave the tears with last year’s book.. Since so many people had quit the year before I was left with Bullitt East’s youngest staff, consisting of mostly all sophomores. With fresh minds and perspectives I was able to revamp our class and inspire 5 underclassmen to apply to be next year’s Editor-In-Chief. Realizing I was able to make my job and our team desirable has been my biggest sense of accomplishment. During this year I have been more immersed in the journalism world than ever before. I’ve attended conferences and conventions around the country and been able to share ideas with other high school journalists. Me and the newspaper publication’s EIC conducted a session at this year’s SIPA convention. We shared how our staff comes together to conduct a seasonal sports media night.  

I was blessed to be able to work with the best staff ever and grow with them as a family. My time involved has changed my life and inspired me to pursue this in college and as a career. My senior year on staff has turned my journalism career around completely and made me confident in my skills and identity as a journalist.