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Washington Evening Journal
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WMU starts journalism club
Students will work together to keep their classmates and community informed of MWU happenings
WINFIELD — The Winfield-Mt. Union community will hear a lot more from the community high school thanks to the start of a student-led journalism club publishing the WMU Howler.
The Howler will release monthly newsletters chocked-full of photos, articles, and information gathered and created by WMU students. The club also will put together an activity calendar each month to keep the school and community informed of upcoming events.
Some students participating in the Howler will use cameras on loan from the yearbook club to take photos of sporting events while others will focus on writing content about other clubs and happenings around the school. The group wouldn’t be complete without other students volunteering their talents for creative design to layout the calendars, newsletters, social media posts, and website.
English teacher Taylor Rodgers-Jennings says she heard interest in photography and journalism from her students over the last couple of years and over the summer she decided this was the year. So, after gaining the approval of Principal Gaige Gill, she partnered with art teacher Elizabeth Schoening and began the new adventure.
Rodgers-Jennings says she has already seen the students take ownership of the club as students like Katie Miller and Quin Smith have jumped in nabbing photos from recent football games.
“I think it's fun and it's cool to see like, for other people to see the different angles, because usually they're just gonna see like football for the stands, but with pictures, they can see like those things, because we got to be on the sidelines of the games,” Miller said.
Miller is especially excited to further lean into her interest in photography. Before starting the club, she did a little more than the average taking snap shots on her phone. On vacations she uses her mom’s camera for photography, and she is eager to play around with lighting and angles more as she grows.
Other students are expanding their horizons as they explore other interest in the club like design. Junior Isabella Martinez dove into the project and designed the club’s logo: a wolf with a camera and monocle peaking over the “WMU Howler” title with newspapers in the background.
Junior Madison Kellogg hopped into the club by designing the website which will launch Sept. 30 at www.howler.wmucsd.org and her fellow junior Kellee Milks designed the first poster released Sept. 12 announcing the new club.
While students can’t wait to go out and get photos and write their articles, they are also expecting that this club will help them grow individually and as a community.
“Our writing skills will improve,” Milks said.“ “Also, it will help all the younger kids that don't know when things are because they're so young and like, don't have like Facebook or able to see the website, they can be able to see what's going on during the month.”
“I feel like they'll also help, like parents and grandparents and family members, like when there's games and stuff and we post our activities calendar, like other places for them to look instead of the school website,” Kellogg said.
Miller encourages any student interested in writing articles, designing, or taking photos to reach out to Rodgers-Jennings or Schoening to learn more about joining the Howler.
In the meantime, Howler members encourage the public to follow them on Facebook at WMU Howler and watch as they begin to put out content shortly. Additionally, a subscription service for the newsletter will become availbe in the coming weeks.
Comments: AnnaMarie.Kruse@southeastiowaunion.com
