|
Jose's WishEach year Eagle Valley High School host an annual Wish Week full of fundraisers to fulfill a local Make-A-Wish kid's wish. When creating this package, I wanted to handle it with care and truly tell their story. When interviewing Jose and his family, I discovered that this was their first time publicly discussing their story. I focused on creating an environment where they felt comfortable, and being biliterate helped with creating that environment. I learned how to handle hard interviews and having a variety of questions when interviewing. Such as not having all questions be trauma-oriented because there was more to Jose's story than what happened to him. Throughout the interview, I would ask lighted-hearted questions such as if you were a Spongebob charter which would you be, and why. This package pushed me as a journalist, storyteller, and scriptwriter to create a story that told itself with as few voice-overs as possible. I wanted them to have control over their own story and tell the story of them as a family getting through it together. My storytelling skills were pushed by focusing on creating a script and editing the video to tell Jose's story effectively. In the end, I created a package that I was proud of and served its purpose of allowing people to get to know and connect with Jose for our annual Wish Week.
|
DE Weighted GradesEVHS offers two kinds of college classes, Dual Enrollment (DE) classes and Advanced Placement classes, and our student handbook states both are entitled to a weighted grade, but this is not what happens in practice. Some DE classes, such as DE Weights, DE Culinary, DE Nursing, DE Broadcast Journalism, DE Filmmaking, do not get the weighted grade. The more my class talked about this, the more questions we had. My partner Sam Elliott and I decided this was a big issue, that it sent messages about what courses are more valued, so we decided to investigate. The more we learned about the problem at hand, the larger the package became. This package took roughly two and a half months to complete, which was something I did not expect. A large percentage of time was spent on gathering interviews, watching interviews, realizing when we had been thrown off and questions had been dodged or avoided, and rescheduling more interviews, and asking different questions to try and get the answers about how this decision was made and what impact it has. Reporting on this package, I realized how important it was to represent all the different perspectives affected by the issue, and Sam and I made that the priority. This is the most challenging reporting I have done. It took a lot of time, hard work, reflection, collaboration, and problem solving. My partner and I put a lot of time and thought into our script to make sure we were telling the truth of the situation and helping people understand all perspectives in hopes it might prompt some re-evaluation and action.
|
|
|
Wish Week Telethon 2021Because of the ongoing pandemic and only going to school two days a week, our annual Make-A-Wish week would have to look slightly different. That meant no big school assembly where we would meet the family, no in-person fundraiser events, and a different approach to an annual tradition. I created the telethon to bring the community together and encourage people to donate to our Make-A-Wish kid Noah. It was a chance to coordinate something bigger than myself. I wanted to bring back some sense of normalcy into an already unconventional year. This package pushed my abilities as a producer and in being able to lead a team. More specifically, in effectively communicating my vision with a team and leaving room for suggestions and ideas I may not have considered before. I learned how to communicate my vision by using analogies, showing examples, and trusting their creative intuition. In the end, I was content with the way the package turned out and felt as if it fulfilled its purpose. In the end, at least, it made a few people laugh, a few people cry, and a student body have something to look forward to after the pandemic.
|
Technology IssuesGoing into the 2021-22 school year, students noticed a significant change in content filtering and technology restrictions. Many students had concerns, and the majority had most likely stumbled upon a website that the school administration blocked. The question that was present was why? My partner and I wanted to understand the why that was never effectively communicated to the student body. We gathered students/teacher interviews about their opinions and perspectives and interviewed the school's lead IT department person. Our focus was primarily on sharing the student's/teachers perspective and then providing an explanation. We structured it that way because we wanted the student's concerns and frustrations to be heard. We wanted their voices to be heard. From there, we focused on communicating the why back to students in a way that they would understand it. This package pushed my investigative journalism skills in figuring out the why and understanding the information provided to us by the IT department. It reminded me that a journalist must always continue to do research throughout the whole process of creating a package.
|
|
|
Updated Covid-19 QuarantiningNow that there is a sense of normalcy in the 2021-22 school year, quarantining restrictions have changed. The most significant change in quarantining precautious was the change from 10 days to 5 days. With that came confusion about how the new changes were communicated to students. After contracting Covid myself and having to quarantine, I was unaware of the Covid-19 precautious. I was uninformed and confused about what to do and when to return to school. After speaking to other students and teachers, I found out that other students shared my same experience. I created this package to help inform students and clarify those questions I had myself. As well as to point out specific issues or obstacles students may face when in quarantine. This package and how the story idea was developed expelifies my skills as a journalist. I identified a problem, situated it with context, showed the consequences of the problem, and identified its implications.
|
John Krueger Veteran ProfileAs part of a project for our advanced broadcasting class last year, we were presented with the opportunity of working with the Veterans project to document local veterans' stories in our county. I value the interview I had with John Krueger because I learned a lot from his stories and life lessons. I further practiced my listening skills and treating interviews as a conversation rather than thinking of trying to get through the interview questions. Editing the package was something I struggled with from cutting down a 40-minute interview into a 6-minute package. I learned only to incorporate the most important moments from interviews into a package and create a script that aligns with those moments. The moments that build the story and help reach the purpose.
|
|
|
Quarantine PackageDuring the 2020-21 school year, a hybrid school schedule was a completely new experience for students and teachers. Not only were students figuring out their new normal, but teachers also were. Living in times with an infectious disease means there is always someone destined to get it without knowing. The question was, what would happen if a student got Covid and attended school? Quarantine. My focus on creating this package was to provide knowledge for students about what happens when you get quarantined, how the school notifies and makes their decision, and how it affects students and teachers. I produced this package when I was myself in quarantine for being exposed to someone with Covid. I had to obtain interviews virtually, create my script at home, and prepare myself to hit the ground running to publish the package when I got back to school. This package pushed me as a journalist to be adaptive to any circumstance that a reporter.
|
Socially Distanced ActivitiesWith winter break around the corner during a pandemic, students were beginning to feel the implication of living during a pandemic. That meant social distancing, face masks, and no guest over. In efforts to promote social distancing throughout the holidays, we created a package about socially distanced activities to do during the holidays. My partner and I wanted to show that it is possible to have fun in a socially distanced way and promote the stop of the spread of Covid-19. I hold this package closely to me because I got to work with my partner Adriana. We were able to have fun in our reporting and help provide students with some sense of normalcy. This package taught me that it is ok to have fun while reporting. It also taught me that emotions are portrayed through packages in the way you script, edit, and film a package. If you're excited about your package, the audience will sense that. That was something I became more aware of for future packages.
|
|