My identity as a journalist is a vibrant combination of different journalistic mediums, a commitment to excellent and impactful story-telling, and a drive to lead empathetically and effectively. Above all that, however, is something deeper. Something that drives my leadership and my commitment to excellent journalism, it’s a mantra that goes a little something like this; “a good story can change the world.”

Since I was young my parents fostered and nourished my natural and strong sense for social justice and a curiosity for the world around me, and encouraged me to have an empathetic and optimistic outlook on life. Eighteen years later, I exhibit that outlook in every story, design, and even in my role as a leader.

In addition to fostering characteristics of my journalistic identity, my parents, especially my father, also taught me how impactful story-telling can be. My father has been an incredibly influential role model in the four years that I have developed my journalistic skills. As a journalism professor and advisor of the Hilltop Views, St. Edwards University’s student run newspaper, he has taught me a lot about how to write the kind of stories that make an impact, stories that mean something. He also introduced me to a style of writing that would become my niche as a student journalist: Solutions Journalism.

Solutions Journalism is a kind of reporting that explores evidence and examples of ways people are trying to solve widely experienced problems. I wanted to take the concept of Solutions Journalism and make it my own. I wanted to report on issues in my community and in the world that I felt deeply about, and offer hope to a generation of my peers who feel discouraged in the face of so many social, environmental, and humanitarian issues. I wanted to write stories that would touch people’s hearts, the kind of stories that could insight change and carry hope. I also have a deep appreciation for my advisor, Michael Reeves, who protected our press rights against censorship and allowed me to report in-depth on issues that mean a lot to me and that are so important in our present world.

I have learned over my years on The Dispatch that empathetic and optimistic leadership is so important, especially on a publication like ours, where we hold ourselves to exceptionally high standards. In my freshmen year in my Journalism One class, my future advisor informed me of his intention to make me an Editor-in-chief as soon as my junior year. This, of course, was very exciting to me as someone who was just beginning to dip my toe into the world of journalism. However, when the time came to step into that role my junior year, it proved to be a challenging feat. I felt unprepared for the responsibility, especially when a car accident that resulted in a concussion in the first few months of the school year threw me for a loop. I was determined to be the kind of role-model and leader our publication needed to be successful. So, I kept pushing myself. Even at the most challenging mental, physical, and educational time of my life, I continued to push myself because I had a deep love and appreciation for our publication and I needed to be proud of my part in its creation.

That first year as an EIC taught me a lot about my leadership style and the kind of things I knew I wanted to be better at going into my senior year. I learned that being a good leader means accepting that you always have something to learn, no matter where you sit on the hierarchy, and that leading with empathy and understanding is the best way to achieve collective and consistent success across the entire staff. That experience, learning about what makes a good leader, is a prime motivator for how I’ve chosen to continue my education, as a Communications and Leadership major at the University of Texas at Austin.

In addition to empathetic leadership and a commitment to impactful story-telling, it was very important to me to be a well-rounded journalist. I’m the kind of person who wants to do just about anything, and be good at it. Newspaper was no different. Even in my intro class I was committed to creating quality work in every medium. As a reporter in my first year on staff I often jumped at the chance to take photos for the stories I was assigned, and even won awards for both the writing and visual elements, allowing me to be recognized as an All-State Journalist that year. Moving into my leadership role it became more difficult to practice a multitude of journalistic mediums at a high rate, but I continued to seize opportunities to take photos and create art. I promised myself after the second print issue my junior year that I would make all my own visual elements for my page in the remainder of my time at The Dispatch. Now, I can say I am incredibly proud of my portfolio and its variety and quality.

Being a student journalist is not without its trials and tribulations, but it is also immensely rewarding. I am confident in my contributions to our staff and hopeful that I have left our publication better than I found it. I know for certain that my time at The Dispatch has had an immense impact on my identity and my hope for my future, to make a difference in the world using my strong story-telling and leadership skills. Being a journalist has made a huge impact on my life and I plan to use what journalism has taught me to make an impact on the world.