Hello, my name is Emily Lombarde, and I am one of the two senior Co-Editors-in-Chief. I have been in journalism since my sophomore year, and if I had the opportunity to participate in my freshman year, I would have.
Journalism is a program in which I flourished both academically and personally. I have established several bonds that I hope last a lifetime and have explored topics I am passionate about. Journalism will greatly help your self-discovery and learning with the various projects available. I highly encourage everyone to consider joining this class.
With this being my last published work, I would like to touch upon a couple of topics journalism has allowed me to dive deeper into.
Firstly, I wrote many articles about mental health and student struggles, and I would like to stress the importance of mental health. If you feel overwhelmed or stressed, there are several healthy ways to cope, and you must find a support system to encourage you to overcome your obstacles. From my personal experience, your happiness and protecting your peace should always be your priority in all cases.
Additionally, apart from life lessons, it taught me that there is nothing more rewarding than using your voice to advocate. The one quote that will stick with me wherever I may go is the one Storms always told us the purpose of journalism was: “comfort the disturbed, and disturb the comfortable.” I believe there are many areas where this quote can be applied.
In our school, there have been many situations where students do not feel heard or comfortable. They use their voice to speak up and have reported feeling like they are not heard.
Additionally, addressing the elephant in the room, there is currently a situation where a teacher is facing accusations. Most of us have had the chance to interact with this teacher personally, and I can confidently say they would never do that. While taking their class, they showed genuine concern for the students, and they were willing to go the extra mile to ensure every student received the help they needed.
With the quote in mind, I have seen the students who have been speaking up for themselves and for the truth. It is admirable that they are willing to be part of a cause bigger than themselves. There were Instagram posts where former students or alumni came together for this cause, and that speaks all we need to know about this situation.
I hope the upcoming classes can be just as outspoken and speak up for the right causes. Even though there may be a lot of things falling apart, there are many good things to come. I believe and have seen that over the years, it does get better.
