I have always wanted to be a writer for as long as I can remember. You know the type of writer that writes short stories, poems and maybe novels or something. That all changed once I got into my sophomore year of high school.

I no longer wanted to be a writer, I wanted to be a journalist.

High School journalism taught me what real news looked like. It taught me how to get the facts. How to write a story that someone would want to read. My journalism class took me out of my comfort zone. I was introduced to a new type of writing that I had never experienced before.

It was a type of writing that I never knew I needed. This class introduced me to people that I never thought I would get close to. It took me to places that I never thought I would be able to travel to.

I was introduced to topics that I once thought did not matter. I learned that they mattered a lot. It brought out a side of me that I never knew I had. It made me more aware of what was happening around me.

I soon realized that you do not have to want to be a journalist to be in journalism. No matter what field of study you pursue in your lifetime, the aspects of good journalism will be there. You will always have to write, always have to speak to people and always have to tell the true story.

Journalism is a class for everyone. It has the ability to bring people from every background possible together. Whether you are black, white, gay or straight; If you are considered a jock or a nerd journalism could be the thing for you. High school journalism gave me the best three years of my life. Three years that I will remember forever.