FEATURES
FEATURES
Feature stories hold a special place in my heart.
Features push me to truly explore the human condition and extend beyond the who, what, when, where and why. I use to dread setting up interviews for a piece, worrying about what icebreaker to start with or if my questions were good enough. Through more experience and growth, I have become confident in not only my interviewing but my ability to showcase untold stories in a unique, bright light.
PROFESSIONAL WORK
KLEIN COLLINS’ BRETTE REAGAN IS THE FIRST FEMALE BASEBALL COACH IN DISTRICT HISTORY
Getting the opportunity to write about a woman in sports, breaking gender barriers was one of the highlights of my high school journalism career. Reagan, a former All-American softball player at Baylor University, accepted a job at Klein Collins High School as an assistant baseball coach. As soon as I heard the news, I reached out to Reagan eager to tell the story. After a photo shoot and three hours worth of interviews, I had everything needed to showcase her journey into uncharted waters. Click here to see it published, but use the button to read the story.
MORE THAN A BLOW-OFF CLASS
A big part of playing the GPA game is incorporating ‘blow-off’ classes into an academic schedule. These are classes that can make averages look better while not having to devote as much attention to secure a good grade. In an academically competitive school district like Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District, ‘World Area Studies’ is considered among students to be one of those courses. Megan Puckett, who teaches the course at Bridgeland, doesn’t see it that way. After half a semester in the class, it was easy to see her passion for the subject, even though it wasn’t reciprocated by all of the students. With that in mind, I wrote about her thoughts on how students perceived the course and why the course is beneficial to students beyond its GPA weight. She also added comments on the education system as a whole.
LIVING LIFE ON A HIGH NOTE
Every Friday as I walked to the girls’ locker room, I would see a man giving high fives to every student humanly possible, dancing to the upbeat music streaming from his classroom and displaying a smile so big I could see it through his face mask. The year 2020 was a dark time, and to see someone so full of light was refreshing and definitely something to write about. I asked around about the cheerful man in the hallway. I discovered it was Bridgeland’s choir director Christopher Fiorini, and I set up a Zoom meeting immediately. I explored the joy he displays in and out of the choir room and how he tries to impact students with his optimism.
GOLD MEDAL IN 2021 UIL ILPC FEATURE WRITING
The More You Know
What I’ve learned from feature reporting and writing
How to formulate interview questions to get quality quotes
Properly writing a chunking story
To keep my eyes peeled at all times to find a story idea and its creative angle