What would happen if...
One year ago, I posed a question to Holly Lachowicz at the Pima and Santa Cruz School to Work Partnership: What would happen if we got high school students from around the city together to produce a newspaper?
As a five-year high school newspaper adviser, I am familiar with the work of teen journalists. Their first and foremost charge is to cover stories and issues that affect their school community. But what, I wondered, would happen if we expanded the boundaries of that community? If the community became Tucson, and the audience became all Tucson teens?
This February a group of students from around Tucson got together for the first time. Their job was to brainstorm story ideas that would represent a diverse range of teen perspectives. For many, their work on "Over the Edge" was a far cry from their daily experiences in school: They came up with the "assignments" and found the sources to complete them. Moreover, their final product is reaching an audience of 193,000.
The students were encouraged to think big but at the same time remain practical about what they could report, write and photograph by deadline. They were able bring a diversity of thought to the table, but were also pushed to see the universal nature of their experiences.
Thank you to Holly Lachowicz and Jodi Horton at Pima and Santa Cruz School to Work Partnership Inc. for their backing and to the Star editors who kept this idea reality-based.
Most of all, thanks to the students who, despite the debilitating diseases of senioritis and spring fever, committed themselves to this project and stuck with it until the end. Your passion and tenacity are inspiring.
- Eve Rifkin
Over the Edge adviser
Creators
Tiffany Fleckenstein attends Palo Verde and is a dedicated band person. She writes poetry and reads anything she can get her hands on.
Jaclyn Nicole Abbuehl is a junior at Tucson High. She hopes to attend college in California and major in journalism or marine biology.
Chandra Roberts is a junior at Tucson High Magnet School. She was adopted from Hyderabad, India, when she was a baby. She is full East Indian and her name means moon.
James Patrick is a senior at Canyon del Oro and will attend the UA this fall. And yes, ladies, he is Italian.
Benjamin Toff is a senior at Catalina Foothills and will attend Harvard University in the fall. He also writes poetry, plays the guitar and likes to read existential philosophy.
Kino Padilla is an adventurous and happy Pueblo student. He loves to dance at raves.
Jon Knutson is a senior at Catalina Foothills and will attend the UA in the fall. He's spent too much time and money pursuing technological endeavors.
Shannon Irving attends Cholla but is on her way to becoming an ASU Sun Devil. She loves music and having fun - just like every other teen!
Colleen Dugan attends Cholla. She loves the bands Everclear, Fuel and Linkin Park, the Cheshire Cat, and the movie "Fight Club."
Amanda Graves is a sophomore at Canyon Del Oro. She's interested in photography and plans to work on the yearbook photo staff in the fall.
Kristin McClure is graduating from CDO and moving on to Northern Arizona University in the fall to study elementary education. She hopes to conquer the world with her irresistible quirkiness and spontaneous acts of enthusiasm.
Maxine Ramirez will graduate from Pueblo in 2002. She likes basketball.
Not pictured
David Sidi is a senior at Catalina Foothills and editor-in-chief of The Falcon Voice. He plans to study journalism and communication at the UA.
Jamie Macias is a junior at Ha:San Preparatory & Leadership School. She likes to play basketball and softball.
Jennifer Hamnett is a junior at Sabino. She loves singing, especially at the top of her lungs in the car with the windows rolled down and the radio blaring.
