I know when cuts are coming everyone is going to stand up for what they believe is the best sport/activity/club. No one wants to see the cuts made to anything, and we all want to hold onto all of our favorite activities.
But journalism—the printing of the school paper and yearbook
—cannot be lost.
During my junior and senior years in high school, I can honestly say that I lived and breathed journalism. I’ve never been an athletically inclined person, or elected president of any of the student organizations, but I did have a voice in journalism.
A voice and position where my decisions were trusted and ideas were respected, the class I looked forward to every day no matter how much work needed to be done. Although there were plenty of days I walked out of class frustrated with layouts or stressed about deadlines, I knew I would come back and work to make a yearbook and newspaper that OHS could be proud of.
At the end of my freshman year I heard that the journalism classes were being reduced to a club. I knew I wanted to help because I enjoyed working on the yearbook as a 8th grader.
There was even talk of just printing pages of school pictures out, stapling them together and handing them out as a ‘yearbook.’ I didn’t want that to become a reality.
Having journalism as a club was a learning experience for sure. There were not that many experienced people involved. We were all starting from square one. The club was not a huge hit, we had around 30 people sign up but we never had half show up on a regular basis.
Meetings were on Saturdays but not many were willing to give up other commitments to come in and sit at school. The same people put in hours and hours of work to just finish the book as best as we could.
The book came back and it was not ‘award winning’ as many of the past books were, unfortunately. We did our best with what we had.
The only logical way of creating a yearbook and school newspaper is to have journalism as a class. It is the only way students can be held accountable for their actions; without consequences, it’s just a bunch of empty promises and half-finished spreads. Class keeps everyone updated and working together as a team.
Journalism as a class is the best way to have a newspaper and yearbook for the student body to enjoy. It would not be fair for the students interested in the program or the teachers who have spent numerous hours making this class and business a success every year.
The class started out rocky, but by the end of the year we had an awesome yearbook, and published twice as many Knightbeats as the years before. I was proud of what we had accomplished, and was honored to be a part of what had been done.
Senior year I realized how much I loved writing for the newspaper. I was given the position of Editor of the Knighbeat, and seriously thought about turning it down; it turned out it was the best thing that could have happened to me. I found a voice through writing; I could influence people, and publish things others were interested to read.
I took my knowledge and interest and was able to start writing for the Moline Dispatch and Orion Gazette, which I have equally enjoyed (published 101 articles so far).
It’s fun to submit articles to the other papers, but to actually understand how the pages are put together and the yearbook templates are made is a process that students can only experience for themselves.
After knowing what it takes to put a single spread in the yearbook or Knightbeat together, you appreciate those books and papers so much more. The hours spent on both projects are enormous; time spent on such tasks can only make a student love this process even more.
Although the class may not have 30 students in it, those who are involved are dedicated to what they’re doing. It would be sad for students to lose their journalism staff and yearbooks.
Although the news in the Knightbeat may not be “new” when it comes out, everyone still loves to read the paper, see if they’re quoted, and find pictures of themselves.
Finally, for anyone who has ever had something in print, it’s amazing to see your name in the “Byline,” knowing that it’s going to be read by many, many people around Orion, and having a feeling of accomplishment.
The teachers alone have made this class an enjoyable one and have made great strides with what they were given when they started this ‘adventure.’
I learned a lot from journalism: people don’t always see eye to eye; when deadlines are approaching, tensions run high; it’s hard to get things done; communication is key.
I was able to improve on my writing skills, and learn many technical skills as far as office equipment and the programs themselves. Talking
to others was probably the biggest thing I learned.
The Knightbeat and yearbook are a lot more enjoyable when many people are quoted and included. These items represent the school.
When we look back at them, we want to know a little bit about everyone, not have a handful of students giving their opinion on every subject ever mentioned in the yearbook or paper.
I’m sure I’m not the only one who sat and looked through my parents’ yearbooks; I hope that my kids and future generations will enjoy those books. I hope students now understand the dedication and amount of work that goes into making these publications a success and a piece of OHS history.
I know I put hours and hours of my time into the Knighbeat last year, matching margin lines, looking over text at three times the normal size to catch errors, and adjusting picture box widths and gradients. I was asked several times “why I did it.” “What did it mean to me?” And “Didn’t I have a life besides journalism?”
I did it because I cared about the Knightbeat like a football player loves a Friday night game under the lights. It meant I had accomplished something meaningful to me, like breaking a school record in basketball points.
And, I did have a life outside of journalism. I simply devoted the time any high school athlete would devote to their sport. I spent the time a team spends on the practice field, weight room, and playing field creating publications and hoping students and faculty would be proud of how their years were represented in OHS history.
The yearbooks and newspapers ARE history, documented through the eyes of students, chronicling the history breaking moments, and preserving the memories of a generation.
Without journalism, I wouldn’t be studying it in college and transferring on to Augustana in a year, to finally get a degree in it.
I’m certain I’ll always have a tie to journalism; it’s something I’ll always appreciate and have a love for.
