Retrospective: June 2022

A few years ago, the Washington Post adopted a controversial yet thought-provoking slogan: “Democracy dies in darkness.” To the extent that you believe this sentiment, I would like to propose another: “Community dies in silence.” This thought has been on my mind often during this past school year with respect to the Mercury.

Why do we have newspapers? Of course, they serve the obvious functions of keeping people up to date with the latest news. I think that, done right, they can do much more than that, however.

For one thing, they can help us communicate with each other. A typical day at EWG hums with activity. With so many amazing things happening in so many classrooms, sometimes we think it’s impossible to keep track of it all. And maybe it is, but it’s also possible that a newspaper makes it just a little bit easier to stay informed. It will always be my goal to make the Mercury a place where people can turn to know what’s happening. By the way, there are some great things happening here! Over the course of the year, the Mercury has reported on some amazing student projects, some of which have put our school on the national map.

Another vital role that newspapers play is to provide a record. Historians understand this well; newspaper archives provide a powerful resource for those who want to learn about the past. Can the Mercury do this for EWG? I hope so. How many times do we find ourselves asking, “how has ____ been done historically?” As we continue to preserve (and grow) our school traditions, I hope that the Mercury can provide a record of events that may be helpful in the future. I enjoy reminding students that they need to give their best because they don’t know whether their children and grandchildren might someday look up their work in the archives. What kind of mark do they want to leave?

This brings me to another important benefit of a school newspaper: done properly, it can be a forum for excellence. Experts in project-based learning tell us that this process works best when student work is displayed for a wide audience. Teachers, how many excellent student assignments and projects have we evaluated, graded, and then filed away in a drawer? Or worse still, filed away in the recycling bin? When we share exceptional work with the community, it helps to raise the bar. Will students work a little harder knowing that their product could be viewed by hundreds of people? I hope so. That isn’t to say that I consider everything that the Mercury has produced this year to be solid gold. We’re all on a learning curve, and one person’s best is not necessarily the same as another’s. As our readership grows, however, I hope that we will have more and more incentive to encourage students to give their all. The work they do can then inspire others.

Perhaps the most important role that a newspaper fulfills is that it gives all our stakeholders a voice. This is a function which you might call absolutely essential in an age in which Social Emotional Learning (SEL) occupies so much of our thought process. An age in which COVID has isolated so many of our students at a critical stage of social development. All humans have an innate need to feel heard, and a school newspaper can provide that for all students who work up the courage to put their thoughts out there (even anonymously). It isn’t just students who need a voice, by the way. We teachers need one as well. As we reflect on this year and prepare for the next, I truly hope that each member of the faculty regards the Mercury as a forum to voice opinions, brainstorm ideas, and share passions. Furthermore, the Mercury will always have a comment section. By means of this tool, I hope that every member of the community will view this forum as both a microphone and a loudspeaker.

Some of you may know how passionate I have been about the Mercury this year, and perhaps this gives you an idea why. I have a strong feeling that it may just matter more than anything else I have done here all year, or in quite some time. And while I have your attention (if you have indeed read this far), I hope I can hold it a little longer to talk about some of this year’s highlights.

Since I decided to revive the Mercury last spring, so much has happened. It’s hard to imagine how we could have had a better comeback, and so much of that comeback is owing to some very talented students who agreed with me that this venture matters.

First and foremost, I can’t say enough about this year’s student leader of our little paper, Annie Spira (Class of 2022). Annie signed up to work with me in last summer’s Journalism in Action program. When she ended up being the only student participant, she decided to stick with it. Together, Annie and I provided what I flatter myself in considering strong, effective coverage of the other summer programs running alongside ours. We started with Bones and Stones, the art and archaeology activity being run by our formidable art team, Elizabeth Lind and Nicole Pichette. Through this project, Annie tried her hand at podcasting, and successfully created a template for our future creators. In subsequent releases, Annie developed her skills as a feature writer and a reviewer. Annie didn’t stop at the end of summer, either. She consistently supported our PLT program throughout the school year, even sticking around when she could have gone home early with senior privilege. She offered great ideas, she brought in more talented student participants, and she helped coach and mentor new members. Annie said “yes” to virtually every assignment I offered her, even when they took her out of her comfort zone. Her steady commitment is the reason why we had a newspaper this year. As a teacher, I was so inspired by her that I decided (with the support of the English department) to institute a new student award for Excellence in Journalism. I hope to be able to offer this honor to a student each year who demonstrates commitment like Annie Spira’s.

As I mentioned, Annie’s enthusiasm helped to inspire others. Megan Ruggieri (also of the Class of 2022) followed close behind her, offering her photography skills to our venture. Beginning with Spirit Week, Megan put together great photo stories that brought campus activities to life for our readers.

Soon after Megan came fellow senior Kelly MacKay. Kelly took our podcasting to a new level, letting EWG students tell their stories in their own voices, and packaging these stories in professional-sounding productions that set a new standard for our publication. Then, in January of this year, Kelly opened a new era in our history, working with Megan to put together our first ever video news report. This report, in which Kelly interviewed several students and teachers about various STEAM-related activities happening around our school, raised the bar for us yet again. The high degree of professionalism she showed paved the way for future excellence.

Right around this time, seniors became a little more scarce, and all our forward momentum could well have been lost. No need to fear this, however, because underclassmen soon stepped up to fill any gaps. One of those students was Aidan Thornton, who had already been lending his video production skills (which are considerable) to support us. Aidan’s first Mercury video was an ad which could hardly have been much better if we had hired a professional marketing firm. Then he took the baton from Kelly, producing interesting video news reports for the remainder of the school year.

I would be remiss in leaving out Abby Dreyer, who, excepting only Annie, became our most prolific reporter of the school year. For those of us who still enjoy reading our news, Abby has kept alive for the Mercury the craft of print journalism. From her first story with us, Abby has steadily and faithfully conducted interviews, shared interesting features, and helped many members of our school community get their voices into the news chorus.

As our school year moved toward its conclusion, we also had an influx of new freshman talent. Two intrepid news teams started giving us quality video content. Sam Gordon, Katherine Larned, and Danae Mahan-Audette started off their reporting careers with impressive coverage of the Exeter Craft Fair. Not to be outdone, Cam Morissette and GL Porreca have capped off some of our athletic seasons with heartfelt player interviews. These students have performed tasks they never thought they could have performed a mere two months ago, and they’re just getting started. Watch for more and even better content next year!

Of course, I could go on and on. I could talk about the creativity of Jess Stone, our resident artist, who brought us the EWG Jester (“dad joke” fans, don’t miss it!), as well as the banner you see at the top of this page. I could say something about each of the students who only contributed once or twice to this publication, and I could make my fingers bleed in praise of my colleagues on the faculty who have supported us in so many ways. I could also discuss in detail the fine suggestions and encouragement that I have received from parents in the community who have been enjoying and providing feedback on our content. But I need to wrap this up before I thoroughly overstay my welcome on your screen.

In closing: what’s next? Please know that next year, I hope to take this beginning and run with it. Look forward to more of everything you’ve seen so far—news, features, podcasts, videos, cartoons, reviews, literary creations, and more. Look forward to more community connections as we continue our “Local Outlook” series, as well as (hopefully), many more features. We’re going to aspire to more sports coverage as well, including as many interviews as possible with our student athletes.

All of this, in my opinion, really depends on two things; you and you.

By that, I mean you parents and you students, all who are reading this (and even those who aren’t). Parents, please bookmark this publication and keep reading! Please also talk us up with your neighbors and share our content on social media. Excellence will flourish with an appreciative audience. The more these students know you’re watching with interest, the more they will be motivated to give this their best. No doubt, in time, their best will become better than any of us ever anticipated.

And you students, please get involved! At the risk of sounding like a cliché, the Mercury wants you! We want your ideas and your commitment. We want all the creativity you can bring us. And we want you to be confident that you can do this. What if you have no confidence? In that case, just give it your best try and watch how you surprise yourself. There are people here who are glad to help, and you might just be stunned at what you can do with their support.

So what is the Mercury to EWG? It’s news, yes, and that’s important. But it’s also much more than that. It’s a voice for each one of us. Without voice, there can be no community. And let’s not forget that excellence should be shared. Get ready, EWG. We’re just getting started!

And now, for the 2022 school year, this is the Mercury signing off.