This year, Hawk Headlines (HHL) hosted a convention for the schools of the Connecticut High School Press Association (CHSPA). While this was only the second time HHL had hosted it, they hope to do it more in the future. The only high schools to attend this year were Nonnewaug and Nagutuck but in the future, HHL hopes to have more schools attend, with even more students to present different ideas about journalism.
At the convention, several presenters from both Woodland and Nonnewaug, sessions about podcasting, broadcasting, photo, and new writing techniques were all discussed. Passionate presenter and journalist Clara Sweetland discussed how she loved meeting people from other schools.
“My favorite part about the convention was meeting different editors from different schools and collaborating on what they do in their programs,” said Sweetland. “Seeing what they do in their programs, helped me understand how we can make our program better.”
At HHL, it is a very multimedia-focused program, with different aspects such as photo, video, podcasting and broadcasting, not just writing stories. Junior and broadcast director Emma DeGeorge says that by going to other sessions, she learned about some of the amazing writing that Nonnewaug high school has. In the future she hopes this will help her to improve on her own writing skills, and not just focus on the multimedia aspect of the program.
“I needed help recognizing that my own writing needed updating,” said DeGeorge. “Even though I like multimedia projects, I think I should really go back to my writing roots and produce quality work.”
DeGeorge recognizes the importance of producing better work, even if it is in a hastened environment.
“I know journalism is very time-crunched, but it’s still important to put effort into stories,” said DeGeorge. “I want to go back and look at my previous work and think I did my best, not that I could’ve done better.”
Although the convention opened the eyes of many journalists that the writing quality should be improved, others might still prefer to focus on the multimedia specialization that has been built over the years. Photo enthusiast and senior journalist Matthew Silva hopes to have better quality photos taken at different events, and seeks to improve the photo department before he leaves.
“I really want to advance our website, and the photos that are on it,” said Silva.
While this may have been the last convention that seniors get to attend in their high school careers, younger journalists are certainly looking forward to doing this again, and continuing to expand the world of journalism throughout high schools across Connecticut.
“I would love to do this again in the future, whether you were teaching or just listening in on a seminar, everyone learned something,” said DeGeorge. “We’re spreading the importance of high school journalism, and how we can better ourselves as journalists to spark an interest in this field once again.”
