Senior Retrospective: Grayson McGeath, Editor

Journalism was not what I had in mind for a future career leaving middle school. As I entered high school, I wasn’t sure what I wanted. I was confused, and still figuring out everything about myself. What I wanted to do, what I wanted to be, who I was supposed to like, what I was supposed to believe in, among other things. Taking Journalism was just a random step, but it led me in the right direction.

Journalism class was a weird journey for me. I was unsure of what I was doing at first, if I made the right decision, and it was all going to be worth it. I learned a lot of valuable skills in my Journalism class, and I discovered my passion to be a news writer. I also made a few friends in the class, some of whom I still work with today. I enjoyed writing, but I noticed how we didn’t get to see our newspaper staff’s writings as often as we should. We got two newspapers a year, and while the writings were great, two newspapers a year felt scarce. I was concerned, but not deterred from working on the newspaper staff. In fact, I was more convinced that I was making the right decision.

Sophomore year arrived, and I joined the staff, which composed of about six people, including me. By the year’s end, we have four people. This was the year our staff took a big leap, and dove into the world of online news. Our stories were awkward and our website was ugly, but we kept working, and hoped that the effort would be worth it.

Junior year was a big year for the Lamar Scroll, as our staff members had increased from four to 11, and after three semesters on a choppy-looking website, we updated, with the help of Jay Ryan, and started using a website with a much more modern layout and format. The stories this year were stronger, and were put out more often, but I quickly realized that what was missing was energy and drive in most of our staff members. It became very clear very quickly that few members of our staff cared about the newspaper as much as the editors, and while the stories were good, I did not feel like our staff was putting in the work. Our website looked good, though, and I was excited for my senior year as editor.

The first three years prepared me for the uncertainties an editor faces, but nothing could have prepared me for how joyful and successful this year was for the Lamar Scroll. New changes brought to the Scroll included a new staff, more organization, and better teamwork.

My senior year was better than I could have ever imagined. With a wonderful junior editor by my side, and a staff that was excited to learn and write, I was able to head a wonderful newspaper filled with a much more diverse library of stories, editorials, and features, that covered a much broader range of topics. We had a very involved staff that was very focused and always worked hard to get the scoop. My senior year as the newspaper editor was an absolute dream, and I could not imagine it going any other way.

I want to give thanks to Mrs. Whaley, the newspaper advisor, Katy, my junior editor, Alma, our photographer, Kade, our cartoonist, and my writers, Te’Aerra, Marissa, Emily, Gabby, Kennedy, Naarah, Sierra, and Athena, for making this year a dream come true.