The Redwood Bark

According to the Cambridge Dictionary, ‘barky’ is an adjective that describes something loud in a way that resembles a dog. In my high school, a ‘Barkie’ is a noun that categorizes the nosy and persistent student journalists of the Redwood Bark who hibernate in the recesses of room 177.

Room 177, dubbed the 'Bark room', houses the late nights during paste-up; the dynamic and bickering family of 'barkies'; early morning emergency discussions about breaking news; and the ferocious determination of student journalists. Within the walls of colorfully painted sheetrock is a distinct environment of achievement and a culture of relentless pursuit

In that room, I have had the pleasure of contributing to a nationally recognized feature on student safety and interviewing Alicia Garza, the co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement. I have also reported on the naturopathic world of healthcare and explored the nuances of important topics like food waste, street harassment, taboos around male mental health, the Israel and Hamas conflict, and more.

In that room, I have learned the importance of advocacy, empathy, representation, resilience, and the value of my voice.

My evolution as a Barkie, a journalist, a writer, and a kid maturing as my diction did was unexpected. I joined the staff as a freshman, one of the few in the newspaper’s history to be granted a spot, and remained on the staff for all four years of high school as a writer, editor, collaborator, and critical thinker.

The natural progression is that I would have become Editor-in-Chief and retained the Bark’s legacy as one of the Pacemaker’s top 100. Instead, I invented a new section of the paper, pioneered new digital layouts, and revolutionized the paper's contributions to include open submissions from anyone in the student body, not just those on our staff. Instead, I became the first-ever junior to execute a semester-long project focused on community advocacy. Instead, I found my niche as an artist, a writer, and as an individual. 

Within that program, I learned how to be independent and seek and obtain distinction, while still contributing to the community. I found my success charting my own trajectory and defying the paper’s conventions. In that process, I led the paper to succeed as well. With the incorporation of my new section and digital layouts, we were ranked 10th in the country.