Frontiersman inspires student to pursue writing career
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By Sophie Harris
For the Frontiersman
For many high school seniors, it seems like the year has gone too quickly and I am no exception. Since the age of 5, I have been in the public education system. I have been promoted from elementary to middle school, finally reaching high school — a momentous achievement. Though it seems like it took eons to reach my senior year, now it is already half over.
Throughout my first three years at Mat-Su Career and Technical High School, I felt misplaced. From my freshman year on, I heard students talk about their plans for careers in nursing, engineering and other highly specialized fields, and about their plans to achieve those dreams. For a student with no idea what she wanted to do after high school, let alone the rest of her life, this was equal parts impressive and daunting.
My junior year I began writing for the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman. I never would have written for the newspaper or become interested in journalism as a career if not for John Notestine, an English teacher at CTHS. The opportunities afforded to me by Mr. Notestine and the staff of the Frontiersman encouraged me learn more about my school and community.
Writing for the Frontiersman encouraged me to take a greater interest in issues that affect schools in the Valley. Reading other students’ and teachers’ experiences and views made me feel like I could speak more confidently about local educational issues. It also made me feel more confident about writing about school events and other articles. The feedback I received from students and teachers has made me more confident about writing on issues that could be more controversial as well, like marijuana in schools.
One of the many ways that writing for the Frontiersman has expanded my world is by teaching me about what it takes to be a journalist. Before I began writing for the paper I had never considered writing as a career. Now I am applying to colleges to earn a degree in educational English and a minor in journalism.
After college, I hope to use my degrees in educational English and journalism to teach English abroad and to write. I hope to go to countries that, for reasons like political regimes or lack of influence, do not receive attention for the issues that affect them. I hope that if I am not teaching English, I am writing about issues like poverty and climate change. Issues like these disproportionally affect unindustrialized countries.
I can say with confidence that if I hadn’t began writing for the Frontiersman I would have missed out on many opportunities. Publishing articles and photos for the paper has allowed me to learn about different careers I had never considered before, as well as interview interesting people.
It is because of the great community I have met through the Frontiersman that I am choosing to stay involved in journalism.
Sophie Harris is a senior at Mat-Su Career and Technical High School.