What do you think of when you hear the word “Boston?” Here at Bronx River High School, we think of the  National High School Journalism Convention. This event is held twice yearly, once during the fall and once during the spring. High school students across the country join together to improve themselves as journalists. 

From Nov. 2 to Nov. 5, five Bronx River students, Aliyah Ali, Cesar Jimenez, Isaaka Kabore, Jamal Quinones, and Anastacia Vidot, will attend the Fall National High School Journalism Convention in Boston. 

 “I’m very excited because I’ve been looking forward to the trip since freshman year,’’ says Aliyah, a sophomore who started working for the Bronx River News as a freshman. “I’ve seen journalists improve their writing after going, and I want to improve my writing too,” she says.

 Anastacia, a senior, echoed a similar sentiment. “Seeing what advice I can get from professionals and learning more about how they became successful inspires me,’’ she says. 

Cesar, a junior who serves as the paper’s news editor, says, “I’m looking forward to meeting other journalists from other schools, and taking photos.”

However, entering a completely new environment in such a small group makes some of the students feel nervous as well.

“I’m feeling nervous because Boston is pretty far from here, but I am looking forward to the free food and meeting some of the professionals there,” says Isaaka Kabore, a senior who serves as the paper’s managing editor.

Jamal, a sophomore who started taking photos for the newspaper last year, is looking forward to the trip: “ I hope to become a better photographer and take what I will learn to improve the school,” he says. 

The Journalism Education Association and National Scholastic Press Association have sponsored this event for more than 50  years, drawing more than 5,000 participants. At the convention, students will work in small groups with professional journalists who will provide support in particular skills and strategies used in journalism.  They also will get a chance to interact with students who will have traveled to Boston from as far away as California, Texas and even London. And they will have a chance to meet with college representatives from across the country.

Press Pass NYC, a nonprofit that supports school newspapers in underserved areas of NYC, is helping cover the costs, which includes hotel rooms, travel and meals. The Student Council also is supporting the trip  by selling homemade treats donated by the school staff. Plus, the JEA awarded the students scholarships that cover the $625 in registration fees.

This will be the second year in a row that students from Bronx River High School have had a chance to attend the national convention. Last year, the newspaper sent two students and the advisor to the convention in St. Louis with financial support from a JEA grant and Press Pass NYC.

Founded by Lara Bergen, Press Pass NYC provides opportunities for student journalists and advisers to attend journalism workshops and learn from each other. 

“I got the idea for starting this organization after teaching 12th grade English at a school in Manhattan for two years,’’ Ms. Bergen says. “That school was small and about 10 years old and didn’t have a student newspaper – and so I had one of my classes work on creating a school newspaper for a fun project, only to find the whole idea of a newspaper and journalism and serving their school community in this way was a completely new and completely awesome concept to them.” 

She says that she feels that students deserve the chance to become journalists and know more about journalism. “That led me to become aware of the fact that most schools in New York City were like that school and without a student newspaper or this kind of opportunity for students to learn about journalism and tell their stories and the stories of their community in this way and the fact that the schools that did have student newspapers were the best-funded and most selective schools – which is neither fair nor necessary,” she adds.

The students attending the convention believe the skills they learn will help them enhance the Bronx River News. They also plan to share what they learn with other student journalists in New York City  through Press Pass NYC’s workshops.

“I believe the trip is a great way to expose students to the inner workings of journalism,” says Starr Giscombe, assistant principal. She adds that the trip teaches the requirements of journalism and allows students to travel and see journalism outside of BRHS.

“It will benefit students in the long term. Many people don’t realize who they can be until they go outside and see how many more opportunities there are awaiting for them,” she says.