Photo by Paola Perez
Reporting & Writing
Reporting and writing are the foundation of my work in journalism. My niche is covering local news events, and I got my start covering my local school board. While today, my coverage has diversified, every story I write still focuses on my mission of informing my peers about the world of stories and events that surround them. Of the over 80 articles I have written, here are some of my favorites.
Unless otherwise noted, all photos by Seyun Park
Click the headline to view the story on wjpitch.com
This was one of the first articles I worked on as a staff writer on The Pitch, yet it still remains one of my proudest. In the immediate aftermath of the war in Ukraine starting, clubs all over our school banded together to raise funds and support for the war effort, including through bake sales and letter writing. Covering how we, students thousands of miles from Ukraine, were being affected and were affecting the war was a fascinating story for me, and reflects the impacts of worldwide events on our much smaller school community.
Courtesy WJ Bake with Kindness Club
While throughout my journalism career, I've mostly focused on news and sports writing, this was one of the times I branched out into editorial writing. When I saw the news story of a young boy being killed by a driver for the high crime of being on a sidewalk, I knew this was one story I couldn't write objectively — I would have to take a stand. As someone who loves to ride my bike around the neighborhood or go for a walk, the pedestrian deaths were simply too frequent, and I wrote this opinion article calling for better safety measures for cyclists and pedestrians.
At the height of the Black Lives Matter in 2020, MCPS announced its plan to start a systemwide antiracist audit, looking at it's structures and systems, and how they contribute to or are complicit in systemic racism.
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At the completion of this audit in October 2022, I attended the press conference to cover the announcement of the results, which found that MCPS had a "lack of a clear, system-wide comprehensive approach to antiracism." This article was also important to our school where we were dealing with hate-bias incidents like racist and anti-semitic graffitti, showing how MCPS would respond.
Last fall, schools around the county were plagued by differing security incidents. At our school, one student brought a loaded gun to school, while other schools had multiple incidents of bomb threats prompting evacuations.
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This article covered the general rise in security incidents and the student response to this, specifically covering a resolution introduced by Student Member of the Board Sami Saeed. The article also examined the feasibility of security measures like metal detectors and a return of school resource officers and was an important response to the bigger issue of security students were experiencing on a daily basis.
In August 2023, reporting by the Washington Post revealed allegations of sexual misconduct by former Principal Joel Beidleman. As the follow-up coverage increased, the focus shifted to MCPS Superintendent Dr. Monifa McKnight and her alleged involvement or complacency in Beidleman's promotion. By January, pressure started coming from the Board for McKnight to resign.
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While our student body was mostly unfamiliar with this entire story as it unfolded, making it difficult to find student quotes and opinions, this article, which ran on the front page of our February issue, was crucial in informing students about the undiscussed and unknown issue.
Photo by Abigail Kee
A comment left by our NSPA reviewer about this story ->
Courtesy MCPS
As soon as the news of Superintendent Dr. Monifa McKnight's resignation broke on a Friday afternoon, rumors started swirling about her replacement. ​Through a source, I heard Dr. Monique Felder's name as an interim candidate mid-day Saturday and began doing in-depth research into her background. I produced this 1500-word profile of her by the time her appointment was announced on Tuesday. This is one of the most in-depth article I have written, going as far as looking at the Internet Archive for the elementary school Felder worked at 20 years ago, and combing through LinkedIn profiles for connections to other MCPS officials.
In this article, I covered six different important county and school system events in news briefs style with each brief less than 200 words long. The headline story, McKnight's $1.3 million severance pay, was accompanied by stories about budget cuts, a potential graduation requirement for financial literacy, homework policy, choosing the next superintendent and a countywide conference of student leaders. While each story is different, covering all of them in news brief style reflects my vast knowledge and familiarity with county news while also delivering info in a easily comprehendible manner for readers.
To cover this game, I traveled over an hour to Bachman Stadium to take photos and write the article, with my deadline the next day. While it appeared the Wildcats were headed for their first-ever state final, ultimately, the game ended in a heartbreaking extra-inning loss. After having written many sports stories about exhilarating victories, I was challenged to write about heartbreak and despair. It was not easy — what could I possibly say about a team that choked away a 3-run lead in the final inning? But taking on and conquering that challenge has given this story special meaning to me.
One of the most contentious issues in recent school system history was a boundary analysis conducted in 2019 that saw screaming and yelling at meetings and opposing Facebook groups set up. Therefore, in 2024, when two new boundary studies were announced, I conducted in-depth coverage, looking at the history of boundary studies and differing viewpoints, and also conducted investigative journalism digging through publicly available data like school demographics and current GIS data for boundaries.
Courtesy MCPS
Courtesy Netflix, reproduced via Fair Use
Although I rarely write Arts & Entertainment articles or reviews, after binging the entire second season of Squid Game over winter break, I felt compelled to write a review. Much like others caught up in the worldwide sensation of Season 1, I really enjoyed the show's drama and message. Especially because the entire show is in Korean, a language I am fluent in, I saw and heard subtle nuances in the Korean language that aren't in the English dubbing or subtitles, all of which made me even further my appreciation of the director's writing.
In 2023, a group of county parents sued the school district over the lack of an opt-out from LGBTQ+ books in the K-5 curriculum. The case made it through the district and appeals court, with the parents losing both times. However, in September 2024, the group appealed to the Supreme Court and in January, the court agreed to hear the case. With a Friday afternoon-released order, I wrote a quick article about the case and the arguments on each side. The case is the first time MCPS has gone to the Supreme Court in 20 years, and this article won Best of SNO for the coverage I did.
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