What leads to success? Is it teamwork? Dedication? Perseverance? Or maybe it’s interest, desire, perhaps purpose? Opinions vary. Many people believe that it’s a combination of these things. No matter what the case, there is one element that everyone can agree is one of the key elements for success. And that is communication.
Having a way to communicate with participants or students, employees or volunteers, can make or break a learning or working environment. It’s crucial to success, like oil to a machine. It keeps the parts moving smoothly.
A small group of students discussed this and others in the library cafe, after school on an autumn afternoon. They were discussing a Tahanto newspaper, and how they wanted an issue out by that November. However, none of them knew that it would take another two years to publish anything.
Of the ten people sitting in the library cafe on that chilly day in early October, only two would come to work on the newspaper for the years to come- Mrs. Vogt, and Leah W. Every day five, a meeting in the library conference room was held. As much as they tried to accomplish their goal, one sixth grader who could barely find the gym, let alone write about the inner workings of the school, and one teacher, just isn’t enough to create a decent amount of well-written articles. So what do they do? They bide their time, waiting until they can recruit more high schoolers.
The 2015-16 school year came and went, with little progress. Thankfully, in the 16-17 school year, the group finally gained a student- Nicole L, a seventh grader and classmate of Leah’s, as well as Harrison V, the first high school member. This time, their focus was not to complete any articles fit for the newspaper, but instead to find new, dedicated members who were both capable and willing to make this school a better place. Eventually, after hard work and a few angry rants, the club grew large enough to finally publish an issue.
The 2017-18 year brought the fruits of their labor. After speaking at a faculty meeting, announcing meetings over the loudspeaker, and lots, and lots of waiting, the Tahanto Times newspaper club was ready to publish. At the meetings you can now see Fenna M, Lillian B, Isabella U, Allison M, and Maureen F, as well as numerous high school students who are considering joining.
Having a group like this is crucial to a school environment. Mrs. Tucceri agrees. "Having a school newspaper allows students to gain knowledge and understanding of journalism, and also allows students to share creativity, thoughts, ideas, and passion with others." She told us. "It is an excellent venue for the Tahanto community to share information, questions and concerns."
Do you want to help us make the school a better place? Come and join us! New reporters, photographers, book, game, or restaurant reviewers, opinion writers, you name it! There will never be enough students (or teachers) to help write great articles! For those of you who want to join, contact Mrs. Vogt at svogt@bbrsd.org, or feel free to come to the meetings, which are every day 5, all lunches, in the library conference room. All are welcome!
The constant efforts to publish a newspaper have finally been successful. The Tahanto newspaper team has, at long last, published articles for the whole school to see. It’s been a long, hard journey, and there’s most definitely more struggle to come, but for now, here it is. The first issue of the Tahanto Times digital newspaper. On behalf of all of us, please enjoy our hard work. Hopefully, you learn something about this school in the process.