It is 8:50 p.m., 10 minutes before the deadline on the Feb. 13 issue. Editors are scheduled to submit their pages by 9 p.m., and they are all huddled together around the couch, ready for the last page to be turned into a PDF. Editor-in-Chief Ginger Kondzela fixes a final typo, with Adviser TeriAnne Libby hovering over her shoulder.
Kondzela clicks export, and the editors sigh with relief. Another successful issue has uploaded to the printer in Garden Grove, California.
The Iliad is an amazing way to connect with peers, earn a leadership position, and work as a class to make something for the whole school to enjoy.
Most students have been in the class multiple times, some for multiple years. In the Iliad, you begin as a staff writer, then, after as little as a trimester of experience, you can become a page editor. Editors edit articles and photo assignments from the staff and put together their own pages.
After working as a page editor, some go on to be an Associate Editor or Editor -in-Chief – people who run class conversations and work with less experienced editors and oversee the issue.
Leadership, working as a team, and writing for publication are skills that colleges and jobs look for, and work experience is an amazing thing to add to your resume or college application.
The layout of the class is structured and collaborative, with steps taken to produce each issue, such as coming up with story ideas, assigning articles and photo assignments, and putting pages together.
Students have the opportunity to express their creativity through art, photography, and graphic design.
Everyone, including people outside the class, are encouraged to participate in The Iliad, whether that is submitting poll answers, suggesting story ideas, or sending in responses to our writing.
The class is focused on teamwork, with all staff members working with each other to complete each assignment. No assignment is written solely by one editor, and they all go through a process to be ready for print.
In this smaller class, everyone is very close to each other, making it easier to cooperate. We can accomplish the same amount of work that a normal-sized class would, and that in itself is something to feel proud of.
The Iliad is a great place for students to voice their concerns/compliments, their own opinions, and overall be an information source that is for the students, by the students.
