Editing, Leadership, and Teambuilding
Photo by Shanon Woolf
Photo by Shanon Woolf
Photo by Shanon Woolf
Leadership is always something I’ve admired. Serving as the Editor-in-Chief for the McIntosh Trail has helped me grow in so many ways through overcoming challenges and giving writing advice to staffers. However, one of the best aspects of being a leader is dedicating more of your time to something you love and helping others become stronger journalists. I use my leadership role to make sure staffers feel seen and make them feel like they are a part of something bigger than themselves. I value taking the time to sit down with writers and providing them with feedback and suggestions on how to make their work stronger.
One on ones
Behind every story is the communication and work being done outside the classroom that actually gets the piece published. As Editor-in-Chief, a lot of my work is done outside the classroom, such as guiding reporters and editing stories. Communication is an important skill in our newsroom to keep pitches going through our editing cycle. But occasionally reporters run into problems, and that's the purpose of my role: to help staffers. One-on-one conversations make me feel like I'm doing my job by taking care of my staff and helping them create better content.
Editor meetings and goals
Me and other editors hold board meetings every Wednesday to set goals, track their progress and manage deadlines. At the beginning of each year I set clear goals for the staff as well as myself as a leader. Then, Wednesday meetings are used to track our progress with these goals, review coverage plans and conquer challenges along the way. This routine helps our staff produce high quality content while holding ourselves accountable.
Me explaining the new 2025 sports coverage plan to my editorial board during our weekly meeting. Photo by Betty Jane Plitt
Edits
As Editor-in-Chief, I work closely with staffers to strengthen a story's language and overall flow. From tighter phrases to larger revisions on sections. My goal is not to only get the story to the finish line of publishing with some quick polishing. I mentor writers as I was, helping them write articles that represent the Trail's policies of accuracy and readability, while also telling an inspiring story.
Teambuilding and training
Alongside weekly editor meetings, I prioritize learning, such as refreshers of app style and photography, and “Fun Fridays,” which are basically days where the whole staff plays a fun game to take a break from the production pressure. The editorial board meetings outside of school hours as well, we enjoy doing fun activities like trying new restraunts and reviewing them together. I prioritize building a staff where the projects don’t seem like "work" because, truly, this is supposed to be a place for students to express themselves and have fun.
_edited.jpg)