After receiving the position of editor in chief my sophomore year, I was nervous and felt unprepared. I only had a year of experience under my belt and was unsure of what the future held. That first year, I did my best to be a good leader and editor, meeting with students and generating in class activities to increase group bonding and writing abilities.

 

After that year, I went into junior year more confident and more ambitious. During this year, I found my stride even more. I worked with the other editors and advisors to win top 10 best in show at the JEA conference in Anaheim, after winning fourth place the year before. We also achieved gold standard during my junior year for the first time since 2013. As an editor, I worked with the editorial board during a censorship scare and defended our rights to press. I created lessons for students and continued to set the standard for the class.

 

Going into my final year as editor, I was more hopeful than ever before. I had attended the Al Neuharth Free Spirit Conference in Washington D.C. and generated so many new ideas for the paper. I reevaluated how I want to be seen as a leader and the relationship that I want to have with the staffers. I set goals and I achieved them. I can easily have conversations with my staffers to see what areas they need help in, and I create lessons to better their understanding. Each staffer has my phone number and I get texts almost every day with questions. I have made myself approachable, so each student feels comfortable speaking with my and fellow editors. I have used my leadership to guide students through launching an online platform, as well as working towards the goal of reinventing our senior edition. I can readily say that this year has been my most successful year as a leader yet, and I will take the skills I have learned and practiced over the last three years with my in the future.