Entering high school, I never imagined I’d care about writing for the school newspaper. I was dead-set on all the STEM clubs, coding this and engineering that. But come sophomore year summer, when I began to think about what I truly loved to do and was passionate about, it wasn’t creating apps or researching neural networks (sorry, Mrs. Sakthikumar). It was writing. As luck would have it, that was also the year the school newspaper became a club that anyone could join, even without space in our class schedules. So I applied to be editor-in-chief.
I had zero experience with journalism coming into the position. Sure, I’d had maybe one article published in the Sammamish Independent and written some blogs elsewhere, but nothing to the scale of what managing a school publication entails. Yet, this paper, its staff, and its advisor helped me learn alongside them. That’s the beauty of The Forum – we’re open to anything.
still remember the first day I called a meeting to order, how nervous I was that people wouldn’t listen and I’d lead the paper off-track with my lack of experience. As the year went on, though, I realized with relief that I didn’t have to be the only one making decisions – I had my co-editor, Kate, but also our advisor and a whole 30+ staff to consult and ensure my ideas made sense. There’s a sort of reassurance you get in a community that’s ready to try new things but willing to voice their disagreement. That’s why I find journalism so vital, and exactly what I’ve found at The Forum.
Though the first meeting last year was nerve-racking, our first meeting this year was my favorite. Meeting all the new journalists eager to try different beats, investigate what they were interested in, I realized how much I’d changed as a product of this publication. I initiate conversations with people I’ve never met because, from interviewing dozens of strangers, I’ve learned people truly love to talk when given the chance. I throw out ideas I’m unsure about without second guessing, because if it meets the right ears, maybe it can turn into the next greatest story. I’m so grateful for every second I’ve spent with the ever-constant, ever-changing staff at The Forum, for every person I’ve interviewed and every person who’s read my articles, for helping me uncover this social side of myself.
I tell you this to encourage you to try something new, just as I did with The Forum. Jump headfirst into whatever you’re passionate about, whatever you want to start but are too scared to try, for fear of failure. Because what if you don’t fail? You could discover a whole new facet of yourself and meet people who will change your life for the better. And if you do fail, you can simply try again or find something else you want to try. Where’s the harm in that?
On a final note, thank you so much to the journalism club advisor for giving me the opportunity to serve Skyline’s paper for these past two years, to all our writers who make the paper possible and to the readers who make our work fulfilling. I can’t wait to read the paper after I graduate and see what crazy shenanigans Skyline gets up to in the following years.
With gratitude,
Sneha Moudgalya, The Forum Editor-in-Chief 2024-2026
