Over the past decade, there have been multiple changes coming and going through the Publications class at CHS. As the class moves on, past and present students reflect on the memories they made as an impact on the future of the Publications class.
Lydia Nelson was a high school publications staff member who was from the class of 2020. Nelson explains her very last year of publications during the COVID-19 pandemic. “Being on the publication’s team in the year Covid hit the nation was definitely difficult; our paper more or less shut down, and we had to delete a lot of our pages, which was not fun. But the time spent in reflection of our time as a class and as people dedicated to publishing the work we had collaborated on for a year was amazing. We came together through our long distance from each other to make one of the best yearbooks yet, and there was a lot of healing that took place in that spring semester. Covid changed all of us, that’s for certain, but it made us stronger as a team and as friends; we dedicated much of our time then to building a legacy for the future. A legacy that shows that the class of 2020 persevered through a global pandemic to make something full of memories and experiences that would last for years to come.”
After the pandemic started slowing down, the publications team had a chance to start competing in local competitions for Journalism. A few of those students were Fallon Carney, Kayce Glenn, and Paige Mausey from the class of 2023. These ladies got the opportunity to compete in SISPA at SIU and the IHSA Journalism sectional and later advanced to state. Past students such as Kayce Glenn and Paige Mausey were even able to make yearbook history by being the first ones to be able to place at the IHSA Journalism state competition for Theme Development during the 21-22 school year.
The class advisor, Mrs.Dorris, has seen many students work on the yearbook for many years. She talks about her favorite moments from the class by stating, “Some of my favorites include attending the SISPA conference for the first time in 2020, before COVID-19 hit, and watching the students compete in journalism contests. Another memorable moment was watching Paige [Mausey] and Kayce [Glenn] place at state in the Yearbook Theme Development contest during our first in-person attendance.” With more students participating in Journalism events increases more chances for events in the future. Mrs.Dorris’s plan for the future of the publications class is, “to continue to grow our program and get more involved in local, state, and national journalism contests highlighting our work. Our current plans for the class are to continue to build our photography program and highlight more events throughout the year on our social media platforms.”
Passing down the legacy of the CHS yearbook has become a big responsibility for many students. This year, the class has expanded to 18 members from each grade level. There has been an increase in members ever since the 2019-2020 school year. Nevaeh McClellan is starting her junior year with her 3rd year of yearbook under her belt. McClellan talks about her input on the future of the class as “the more students involved in the class, the more growth and opportunity evolves for the CHS Lionite.
Seniors Gabe Landon and Philla Cowser are 2nd-year members and have been put as editors in the class along with McClellan. Both seniors were able to step up into a leadership role this year as Landon became Co-Editor-in-Chief and Cowser became the design editor. Gabe gives advice to new students entering the Publications class by saying, “Soak in the memories that you make in the class and make sure to stay on top of your deadlines.”
As the class moves ahead to the future, new students will join as the past ones remember the time that they had in the HS Publications class while leaving their legacy.
