“How can a dyslexic person be the Editor-in-Chief?” This is the question many asked after I was selected to be EIC. Honestly, I probably would have asked myself the same question when I was first diagnosed with dyslexia in third grade. But no one ever asked this question within our program. The Bark supported me regardless of my challenges; they knew not to call on me to read aloud and were patient with me, as it took me longer to edit their writing. The Bark allows us to embrace our journalistic strengths — writing, design, photography and leadership—to produce the best paper possible. This program has changed my life.
When I transferred to Redwood after my freshman year, I searched for a community at my new high school. My mom suggested I join the Bark, saying she had heard good things about the program. I never imagined how much it would come to mean to me. The Bark became not just my home on campus—it became my family.
At such a large school, I might never have met most of my fellow Barkies. But they’ve become the ones I lookforward to seeing in class, running around town and spending late nights with during production week. I’ve never felt so proud to be part of a community.
My Bark family has done so much more than produce a newspaper; we’ve come together to make real change in our community. This year, we identified major gaps in our suicide education curriculum and took our concerns to the district office. Thanks to the efforts of the Bark staff, the entire curriculum surrounding suicide was restructured. It’s moments like these that motivate me to be a changemaker and to continue surrounding myself with people who care about making a difference.
At the heart of our Bark family is our adviser, Erin Schneider. I’ve wanted to be a teacher since kindergarten. That dream has always been inspired by the incredible educators I’ve had over the years. Still, no teacher has impacted me quite like Erin. She was the teacher I always dreamed of having. She encourages creativity, builds genuine relationships with her students and lets us learn through our mistakes. In my junior year, I asked her if I could create an April Fools’ edition. She was hesitant at first, but told me that if I did it right, I could go ahead. It became a highlight of my high school career. I only hope I can someday be half as impactful a teacher as she is.
To my fellow Editors-in-Chief—I couldn’t have asked for better people to spend this year with. I’m going to miss our near-daily FaceTime calls, constant texts about literally everything and Philadelphia adventures together. I truly don’t think I could’ve made it through this year without you by my side.
After over 600 hours editing, in class, on phone calls and traveling coast-to-coast together. I am incredibly thankful for this program—for my Bark family.
With love,
Charlotte
