Nearly three years ago, I joined the Lakota West journalism class in hopes of becoming a writer; Since I was young, I have always found myself with a pen and paper in hand. During the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, I would write mini newspapers for my family about what was happening around the world. When I was even younger, I would write short fantasy stories and mail them to my cousins across the country. I joined writing class after writing class, all hoping to create something worth people wanting to read. And now, after years of working to this point, I have found myself at the end of this journey: the end of a time period that has shaped not only my writing, but also me as a person. This is the end of one journey, and the start of another.
Joining the West Press, I was a quiet, reserved kid. I knew what I was there to do: write. How I did it, however, was through the silence of the classroom, focused brainstorming, and a true passion just to make something worthwhile. Within a few weeks, I had become the website manager, given free rein on making adjustments, tweaks, and an overall rebranding of who we were. I have enjoyed spending the last three years redesigning the look of The West Press, and I hope it will continue to take shape over the years to best fit our class’s needs.
Of course, this was only possible through the spectacular timing of having a new teacher running our journalism program. Because of both a new teacher and a lack of curriculum for the class to follow, I got to help shape how our class functioned; Website upload days, presentations, all things I helped make decisions over. I owe all of that and more to our teacher, Ms. Gelhaus: It is thanks to her dedication to the students, and her desire for us to develop our own paths, that I could have so many chances at trying new things.
I’ve also gotten to write about so many fascinating, controversial, and compelling topics that I hope readers have enjoyed. I highly recommend, if you were to re-read any, you’d check out:
- Define Discipline: Something Lakota West Lacks
- The Entire History of Lakota West High School PART ONE and PART TWO
- Changing for the Worst: Lakota Does it Again
- Wrong Turns Only: Lakota’s New Traffic Rules Miss the Mark
- When Brown Turns Green: Lakota West Principal Leaves for Mason HS
- A Major Miscalculation: Where Schools Went Wrong With Calculators
- How to Fix Lakota West
- ANY of the “A Look Inside the Lakota West Marching Band” articles
- And above all, my personal favorite: “Let’s Settle This: Which is Best, East or West?”
All of these articles have meant a great deal to me, and were favorites to write. I encourage you to read even just a few and see why they mean so much to my time in journalism.
The transformation of my writing from my first article, “Recycling in West Chester Gets Trashed,” to my final article, “How to Fix Lakota West,” perfectly encapsulates my attitude towards writing for The West Press. It started simple: a few local stories about our district, the band, maybe a school event. Now, 45 articles later, I’ve tackled projects well beyond what was required of our class. I’ve completed an in-depth analysis on which side of Lakota is better, critiqued traffic changes and disciplinary procedures, and now, I’ve written 55 pages worth of pure Lakota West High School History. At last, I present to you my 46th and final work for The West Press: Another “too-long to read” article for some random person on the internet to view. But even through the deep dives, provocative rants, and sometimes controversial takes, you were there: the reader. I give you my thanks for the constant recognition and appreciation for my work: I’ve heard from countless students that my writing has been a reflection of the student body’s voice, and I am beyond thankful that people can see my writing as a representation of the people who comprise Lakota West. My goal has been, since day one, to expose the good and the bad that our school has to offer. I truly hope that, through my writing, you can feel my passion to share that.
And now, after three years of work, covering just about every topic and genre imaginable, I say goodbye to The West Press. I take great pride in my writing, and I am not afraid to admit that this will be a major loss to me: I have dedicated myself to bettering not only our journalism program but also our reputation as a school. I hope that sometime in the future, students may look at our website and feel seen through my writing. May that writing inspire someone else to speak up, share their voice, and shout out loud for the world to hear.
I want to thank every single student who has not only helped give input on my writing, but I’ve also shared a class with. I have seen both the worst and the best writers in our time together, and even then, every single student shared a passion to make their voice heard. In a world where telling the truth and speaking up can be difficult, it is so refreshing to see people express their feelings with no regrets. I’ve also enjoyed reading each and every article that’s been uploaded since I joined. One of my favorite parts of each bi-weekly Thursday upload was reading each writer’s work and hearing their thoughts. Even if I have disagreed with some opinions we’ve published, it is crucial that, through our journalistic work, every opinion is valued. I have been… vocal about my disdain for Lakota, but those complaints have always come from a place of love: If I truly hated this school and its administration, I would never have made critique after critique, offering alternative solutions and ways to better our school. It is through “tough love” that we can make Lakota West a better place to be.
I may never return to Lakota West. I may never walk these halls again, and I may never see a “better” version of our school. But maybe one day, someone will. Maybe my writing will have made just a little bit of an impact, or made just one important person who holds a position of influence and power reconsider the options in front of them. My years here have been an absolute blessing, but it is time to see where the future takes me. This is the end of one journey, and the start of another! Thank you to every student, teacher, mentor, parent, and administrator that I’ve had the honor of working with over the past three years. I am beyond proud of what we have accomplished in my time here, and I can’t wait to see what is next for The West Press and the future of journalism here at Lakota West High School.
Until we write again!
Thomas Price
