“You're just a kid, you wouldn’t understand.”

 

Heard from a multitude of people, including from my parents and even teachers, I have always loathed being a kid. We’re always underestimated when discussing serious topics about the world, such as racism and inequalities, yet somehow mature enough to be compounded by expectations regarding our futures. This contradiction is frustrating; we are dismissed when we want to contribute, yet pressured into making significant decisions regarding our education and careers. Because of this, in my freshman year of high school, all I wanted was to grow up quickly and follow the conventional STEM path laid out for me. However, joining my school magazine, El Estoque, in my sophomore year, disrupted this predetermined path and allowed me to find myself as a journalist.

 

Being a student journalist has taught me many things, but most importantly, it has taught me the importance of amplifying my voice, and that my reporting matters even if I am “just a kid.” From these last two years of reporting for El Estoque, I have written on a variety of topics, ranging from local events to crises that have a national impact. Through these unique experiences, I discovered that being a kid and working with students my age is not a limitation but rather a unique advantage; as a young person, I bring a fresh perspective and relatability to my student body on the issues I cover. 

 

In this portfolio, I showcase five examples of diverse stories I've had the opportunity to report on. Each piece reflects my dedication to ethical reporting and to maximizing my and other students' voices as the next generation. For example, in one of my submissions, I cover Tupac Shakur's influence on Cupertino, California's homogenous population. By seeing the analysis of Tupac lyrics in the Literature department as a student, I was able to report on his impact as a journalist and connect it to larger issues such as the marginalization of the Black community, which is a topic not often discussed or reported on in Cupertino’s predominantly Asian demographic. In another submission, I critique Monta Vista High School's yearly Title IX advisory and the changes that should be made, by both the student body and administration, in order to promote an actual message to students and staff.

 

Through my work, I aim to challenge the misconception that young people are disconnected or too immature to discuss the world’s pressing issues. I no longer loathe being a kid, and as I continue my journalism career, and step into next year as one of my publication's Editor-in-Chiefs, I hope to emphasize to the younger class that age is not a restriction but rather a vantage point. Being student journalists, we are the future, so we must report on the changes we wish to see now, even though we are “just kids.”