5th grade through high school

    Ever since fifth grade, my ultimate goal was to become a print journalist. I convinced my family to subscribe to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, and devoured the paper everyday. At about the same time, the Atlanta Braves began their Miracle Season, going from last place to first place in the span of a season. Although they ultimately lost to the Minnesota Twins in a riveting 7-game World Series, the excitement surrounding the Braves stoked my passions for journalism even more, as I yearned to be like baseball beat writer I.J. Rosenberg, penning my own stories every morning in class.

    As the years went by, I distanced myself from my journalistic ambition a little. My suffered from an affliction I convinced myself that I needed to cure. As I half-heartedly embraced the path to medicine, I was stopped short in my tracks when I was a junior at North Springs High School. My best friend Jessica took me to CNN, where her dad was a producer, during the Kosovo bombings. The excitement, sense of purpose and dedication of these reporters rekindled my journalistic dreams, and from that day forth, I renewed my commitment to become a reporter.

    After that revelation, I became very involved in the North Springs High School Oracle where I spent my fourth period everyday with some of my closest friends and the tutelage of Mr. R. H. Peterson. I sold ads, worked on layout, sold papers, wrote articles and had my first real journalism experience.