Writing
Collection of favorite stories
Below is a sample of diverse work across my portfolio, ranging from in-depth features to personal narratives. The common throughline between all these stories is my desire to enact change through my reporting. Student journalism is one of the most powerful tools young people have to enact change in their communities— a responsibility I have never taken lightly.
Students share experiences with substance use disorders: This story examined the substance use disorder problem at my high school and the lack of support / guidance provided to students as they battled their disorders.
The digital divide: how availability and accessibility of Wi-Fi impact socioeconomic disparities: I delved into the disparities in broadband internet access and spoke to a teacher and professor to understand both its historical roots and implications on society.
Not so welcome? East students share experiences with discrimination at school ---------------------------------------------- Quill and Scroll 3rd Place In-depth Reporting: I worked with my two co-editors to survey hundreds of students in my high school on their experiences with discrimination at my school. We then interviewed students on their experiences to supplement the survey data. This was the most impactful piece of journalism that I worked on and proved that breaking news can be stories that persist on a daily basis, but are simply not covered. I heard stories that have forever changed me and gave me a deeper understanding of the everyday struggles of my fellow peers.
Bridging the generational gap: I was able to research the generational gap in a variety of different sectors like technology, politics, and more and connect it to East students, but also to the broader worldwide struggle to connect amidst the omnipresent, and continually widening barrier of time. I both conducted interviews and a survey to make this both a qualitatively and quantitatively backed story.
East student battles leukemia diagnosis: This story was a feature on a student that was diagnosed with leukemia. It delved into his journey, perseverance, and how he found support through the obstacles.
Go4theGoal aids kids with cancer on their journeys to recovery: This was a story on a local community non-profit focused on helping kids with cancer. The woman that created it lost her son to cancer, but used her sadness to fuel passion. I found it was important through my journalistic journey to focus on community-backed reporting, a crucial role for student journalists.
Exploring accessibility: "NJ most restrictive state in nation for students with disabilities." After seeing this headline from the Education Law Center, I knew that I wanted to do an in-depth piece covering accessibility in my school district. The piece tried to present a balanced view on both the strides and hurdles that my school district has made to assist students with disabilities. It covered the school system, local organizations in the community, in comprehensive and detailed coverage.
Noah Kriesman breaks East's pole vaulting record: Letting me break out of my comfort zone, this story helped me grow my sport feature writing skills. I experimented with more creative lede and full-circle ending writing and work with more human-interest reporting.
East Culinary Arts teacher takes talents to Food Network: This was the story that broke me into the world of journalism. It introduced me to my love for feature writing, a love that would be infused in the rest of my journalism portfolio.
Pressure to perform at big games ------------------------------ NSPA Top 5 Multimedia Sports Story: Coming from a high-achieving school athletically, I knew for the mental health in sports package I was working on, I wanted to cover the pressure to perform. I detailed both the psychological elements and anecdotal experiences of athletes.
Painting stories: After hearing that Philadelphia was the "Mural Capital of the World," I decided that I wanted to delve deeper into the history and effects of its mural scene. I reported on the ties between mural creation and graffiti and issues today of whitewashing.
Sustainable tourism should have more emphasis in Hawai’i: This story helped deepen my opinion / global commentary skills in a relevant piece during the crisis in Hawai'i. I was able to interview a business teacher and recent visitor in Hawai'i to report on the colonization of Hawai'i and its present day impacts.
I am more than enough.: This story is an example of my personal narrative / opinion writing. It is a key example of my bravery as a journalist to write about personal topics and be vulnerable about my struggles.
STOPit explained: a look into East’s anonymous reporting: This was an investigative reporting story that was backed by a survey with hundreds. It detailed how the current reporting system was wildly ineffective despite the administration continually presenting it as a solution for enduring problems of discrimination (see "Not so welcome?")
East-West sports rivalry evolves through time: This was another in-depth sports piece that explored my district's cross-town sports rivalry. I took a simple assignment and went as deep as possible, exploring the changes from multiple levels.
Honoring excellence or diluting distinction: This reporting explored the reasons and effects of the Class of 2024 at my school had 25 valedictorians. It delved into the ties between race and socioeconomic status with valedictorian status, immense grade inflation, and student perspectives (surveyed hundreds in the story).
Justina Lam (’21) makes the Fencers Club her second home: This story also introduced me further into the world of sport feature writing. I realized that everyone has a story, so nuanced and individual, that most of the time we never realize. This realization fueled my reporting for years to come.
We found Gary Wang. Here’s what we know, Part 2: Gary Wang, a past billionaire involved in the infamous FTX, was an alumnus of our school, giving our newspaper a unique role in his reporting. I canvassed the homes of his old neighbors to see if I could get any insight on his past and also went through online records to learn more about his involvement in the scandal.
Discipline and economic disparities: Cherry Hill School District’s geographic divides: My community has been largely polarized into the "East side" and "West side." Though it has been a large discussion point amongst community members, there was little reporting on it. So, I partnered with two fellow editors to uncover the disparities between the two "sides" from the lens of discipline and economic disparaties.
Community response to stories
Community engagement and readership is hugely important to journalism. After all, a story is dependent on its readers. Thus, it is always very special to me and the rest of the Eastside editors when members of our school and local community reach out to talk about our stories.
