TEAM BUILDING
While producing our work is important, so is taking the time to strengthen the connection between staff members. Whether it be our weekly award ceremony, fieldtrips, or in-class activities, our publication strives to make sure every staffer feels welcomed and important. These activities and events strengthen our bonds with one another, helping to build friendships that last outside the classroom.
Field Trips
Almost every year our adviser takes us on a national field trip for the JEA/NSPA Convention, allowing us to expand our journalistic knowledge. After going to Boston, Seattle, and just recently Nashville, I have learned a variety of things that have helped me improve as a journalist, like effective leadership, common AP Style mistakes, photography, and more. These conventions have given me the opportunity to speak with professional journalist around the country to help build my understanding of what it'll be like when I pursue journalism as a career.
However, it's not just knowledge I gained from these trips, but the experiences shared between my peers and me. My first JEA/NSPA Convention was in Boston, MA, which was a pivotal moment in my student journalist career. Being an underclassman on this trip was a bit nerve-racking at first, but I quickly found everyone was welcoming and genuinely interested in making friends, which helped make the environment a fun, safe space.
Much like when we went to Boston, everyone on the Nashville trip was welcoming and fun to be around. The day we arrived, we were all invited to one of the rooms to play video games, and from that point on we were all good friends. If it weren't for this trip and others like it, I'm positive the connection between staffers would fade, as these trips really bring the team together while creating family-like bonds between members.
Followed by the national field trips are our local fall and spring WJEA conferences. To start the school year, our class gets the opportunity to travel to Everett Community College, where we attend sessions, see the winner of the Emerald award, and listen to a keynote speaker. Even though this trip can get a bit repetitive after going multiple years in a row, it's still a great opportunity to meet new people.
Put together by our adviser are newsroom tours, which we do at least once every year. These trips usually start with our class being shown around, where we've been able to see the interworking's of a live broadcast, radio station, and written articles. I personally love being able to see what each newsroom looks like, as it gets me excited for my future as a journalist.
The big opportunity that we get with each of these excursions is the chance to talk with the professionals. Most of the time, we ask them questions about their career and how they got to where they are, while also getting an inside look at their day-to-day job. These conversations open the door for connections, as the people we meet could very well be people we work side-by-side in the near future.
While we are strengthening our connection with the community we are within, we are also creating stronger bonds between the staffers we work with. Each time that I have gone on one of these trips, I learn something new about someone on staff, or get to meet someone I didn't know very well. Since most of these trips require us to take a bus, we have lots of time to conversate.
This spring we will be hosting the WJEA conference, which gives all of the media classes at Central Kitsap High School the chance to untie and show our support for student journalism, especially since the classes have been divided for quite some time. Considering that this will be my final WJEA conference, I'm excited to spend time with my peers, while showing support to all who chose to compete in competitions.
End of Year Gala
Each year around May, our publication hosts a gala, where members of the Figments Magazine Club, Yearbook, Broadcast, Journalism, and Quill and Scroll Honors Society come together to celebrate and win awards. What was originally just a celebration for Journalism staffers has now expanded to each media class, finally giving the publications a chance to connect.
Through my three years participating in this event, I have won a total of nine awards for both my writing and leadership, and now as editor-in-chief, it'll be my turn to award outstanding staffers that deserve recognition. During this ceremony, we watch a 5-to-10-minute video highlighting the memorable moments of the year, which is put together by a staffer. Afterwards, the EIC will hand out awards to reporters before ending the gala with the rising leadership team, who will all gather on stage for their promotion.
With my last journalism gala around the corner, I'm sure it'll be a bittersweet event to say goodbye to the program I have been a part of since my freshman year, as well as the friends I have worked alongside for quite a few years. However, I know I'll be filled with excitement as it marks the transition into my career as a professional journalist.
Part of the Journalism leadership team during the 2023-2024 Gala.
Before introducing the new leadership staff for the 2025-2026 school year, the current leaders of the 2024-2025 year walked the stage and collected their certificate for the completion of their position.
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This staffer was awarded a Golden Plate for taking extra time to create a custom design for our sports page on our website.
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This staffer was awarded a Golden Plate for writing two excellent stories. As explained by a copy editor, the stories came to them error free, both structured in an engaging way.
Golden Plates
This tradition has been around ever since I joined the publication. Each week, the editor-in-chief will pick one staffer who demonstrated excellence and award them with a Golden Plate and a candy of their choice.
While winning awards makes everyone feel great, it especially resonates with new staffers, as they get to see their hard work pay off in real time. It makes me really happy to see staff members giving everyday their all and being excited to see if they'll win an award at the end of the week.
This was the first ever Golden Plate I won. Awarded this during my freshman year, it definitely made me feel confident in the choice I made to join the staff.
In(duck)tion Ceremony
During our stay in Boston for the JEA/NSPA National Convention, I found and bought a small stuffed animal duck our publication named Goober. Ever since that trip, our classroom has seen an increase of ducks of all sorts, so much so that Goober has somewhat become our unofficial mascot.
This year, a leadership staffer came up to me and proposed an idea to make an in(duck)tion ceremony for first year staffers to officially welcome them into the publication. Being the founder of Goober, I didn't hesitate to approve this idea.
For the ceremony, each Journalism 1 staffer received a certificate and a duck goodie bag, and after handing everything out, I can confidently say this event will become a tradition.
This was the official award that me and my adviser signed before handing out to our Journalism 1 staffers. Being able to see the excitement expressed by some staffer's after receiving their award made me happy.
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Bonding Activities
For the first three days of the school year, the leadership team came together to plan fun activities to help connect both new and returning staffers. One of these events known as "Don't be the missing tape" was played, as it teaches staffers the importance of teamwork in a newsroom. Another activity put together was a station scavenger hunt, where each leadership staffer would stand in a specific area and talk to new members about resources in the classroom.
These small events not only connect staffers while helping them feel more welcomed in our newsroom, but taught them important skills that'll help them excel as student journalists. As leadership, it's our jobs to help each staffer become the best journalist they can be, while making sure the environment they are part of remains a place where they are free to ask questions and grow.
For the "Don't be the missing tape" activity, each team has to make the tallest tower without talking in order to win. The captain of each team is dubbed the "tape holder" and is responsible for giving tape to help build. However, around 2 minutes in the captains are asked to leave the classroom, where the rest of the team has to build without tape. This activity is meant to show staffers early on that when one person doesn't pull their weight, it'll effect the entire team, not just themselves.
Secret Santa
Around winter break, the leadership staff participates in our annual Secret Santa. We usually have around two weeks to get our person a gift, which in turn helps us get to know the staffer better. During the last leadership meeting before the break, we have the gift exchange. For the three years I have participated in this activity, it has always been a fun way to learn more about the people you work with.
Work Nights
While all work nights are stressful, hidden beneath the chaos is a sense of excitement for the new magazine issue and enjoyment for the time spent together. When we are most productive is also when we can connect the most, as deadline nights show our ability to work together as a team. Since we usually stay till six, we make sure to bring food for each other to eat while we get work done.
While some people might rather be at home, I really enjoy the extra time at school, since work nights are as memorable as the fieldtrips we go on.