Conestoga High School’s
STAFF STATEMENT OF INTEREST 2021-22 Who We Are: The Spoke is a co-curricular class that produces Conestoga High School’s nationally recognized and award-winning student newspaper. The paper is a student-run public forum for student expression. A managerial board of student editors oversees all staff members and the production of The Spoke, including editorial decision-making, story selection, editing and layout. Staff members cover events and issues concerning the Conestoga and Tredyffrin/Easttown communities. They contribute to the paper by covering beats, generating story ideas, engaging in research and fact-finding, conducting in-the-field interviews and writing one to two stories per issue. Traditionally, The Spoke is published seven times a school year. In addition to reporter positions, specialty areas on the staff include business, photography, videography, design for print and web, audio production and social media management. Stories will also be assigned for publication in spoke.news. What is Required of the Staff: The Spoke involves work completed mostly outside of the classroom. Research, conducting interviews and writing are expected to be accomplished after school hours. During class, students engage in activities to strengthen their reporting and media skills; however, students who join The Spoke are expected to possess a strong ability to write effectively. Being an effective reporter involves writing with attention to detail and economy of words, while still exhibiting creativity. In addition to their out-of-class reporting duties, students will also be assigned homework to be completed outside of class as a means of strengthening their reporting skills. All students are expected to write stories regardless of their position on staff. Students applying to The Spoke should be interested in journalistic writing, possess strong writing skills and able to meet deadlines daily. Staff writers are supervised by the editorial board and must work with editors during newspaper production. All staff members meet days 1, 2, 3 in the six-day cycle. Editors meet every day. If You Wish to Express Interest: Forms are available outside Room 280, in Student Services and can be downloaded from spoke.news or the Spoke Schoology group. Your packet must be completed and returned to Ms. Ferriola, Ms. Miller or Mrs. Hyatt, either in their mailboxes, at the main lobby or to Room 280 by Thursday, March 4.
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SPOKE 2021-22 Name
Grade Next year
School (Circle)
Conestoga High School
Tredyffrin-Easttown Middle School
Valley Forge Middle School
Current English Teacher
Homeroom
Have you expressed interest in the Spoke before?
Yes
No
Please answer the following questions. Type and tape onto this document (preferred). 1. Keeping in mind what you know about The Spoke, please describe how you would be an asset to the newspaper (100-150 words). Consider work ethic, writing ability, interpersonal skills, interest in journalism (reporting, writing, design, photography, multi-media).
Please circle other school activities/extracurricular activity you anticipate joining in the 2021-22 school year. Fall Sport
Choral Group
Student Council
Winter Sport
Band or Music Group
Yearbook or Literary Magazine
Spring Sport
Key Club
Drama or Theatre Production
Model UN
Peer Mediation
Stage Crew
Other (this may be an activity inside or outside of school):
Will you take a class that will also occur 8th period (band, choir, etc.)?
If yes, what? 3
AREAS OF INTEREST Please rank the following areas of the newspaper in the order in which they interest you. Number the areas 1, 2, 3, etc. (1 being of most interest to you). _____
Covering sports events
Do you have experience? YES
NO, but I’m willing to learn
_____
Covering news events
Do you have experience? YES
NO, but I’m willing to learn
_____
Opinion pieces
Do you have experience? YES
NO, but I’m willing to learn
_____
Free-hand cartooning/illustration
Do you have experience? YES
NO, but I’m willing to learn
_____ Graphic design (using Illustrator to create graphics)
Do you have experience? YES
NO, but I’m willing to learn
_____
Do you have experience? YES
NO, but I’m willing to learn
_____ Photography
Do you have experience? YES
NO, but I’m willing to learn
_____ Digital media
Do you have experience? YES
NO, but I’m willing to learn
_____ Website and social media
Do you have experience? YES
NO, but I’m willing to learn
_____ Advertising/Business Administration
Do you have experience? YES
NO, but I’m willing to learn
Page Layout (InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop)
If you have experience in any of these areas (if you’ve circled “YES”), please elaborate in Q #1 on the preceding page.
Please see below for requirements. Provide samples according to the position you are interested in. Work Samples 1. Submit an original news article with a proper headline. The article should deal with a school activity or event and include facts and multiple interviews. Word length: 300-400 words. Include your word count at the end. You must include at least two photographs from the event. 2. Submit a story idea sheet (one page) that pitches two possible stories that the Spoke could cover. For each story proposal, you should include the 5Ws and H (who, what, when, where, why, how). You may write this in list form; no need for complete sentences and paragraphing. 3. If you are interested in cartooning or graphics, please also include at least three samples of your work.
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TEACHER RECOMMENDATION FORM FOR THE
SPOKE
English teachers: THANK YOU for taking the time to fill out this recommendation form for this Spoke applicant. We appreciate and value your feedback! We would like to have all materials back to us by THURSDAY, MARCH 4.
Student Name: _____________________________
Current English Course: ________________________Level: Academic/ X / H / AP Student is on-time, focused and meets deadlines. Never
Rarely
Most of the time
Always
Student’s writing is CONCISE, yet engaging. Never
Rarely
Most of the time
Always
Most of the time
Always
Student acts upon teacher feedback. Never
Rarely
Student possesses a go-getter, take-charge attitude and would feel comfortable seeking out sources, conducting face-to-face interviews with peers and adults. Never
Rarely
Most of the time
Always
Student demonstrates problem solving abilities and resilience. Never
Rarely
Most of the time
Always
Did the student attend class regularly, or were there frequent absences? _____________________________ Overall, do you recommend this student for newspaper (circle your response)? Strongly recommend
Recommend
Recommend with reservations
Do not recommend
Additional comments:
Teacher Name: ________________________________________________ Signature:
Date:
Thank you! Alison, Claire and Cyndi 5