Watching the Kings’Cast is a highlight for many students at Lewis Cass. The bi-weekly uploads of fun segments, school updates, and different activities are the highlight of many students’ weeks. In the weeks no cast is being produced, a whole team of dedicated students is writing articles with many different topics, to please every reader, and match every interest. Ranging from topics like sports, musicals, and strong topics around the world. With around 16 students last year, there was plenty of possible content available.
Coming into the new school year, many newer students joining the staff were unsure of how it might turn out or how they might fit in and find their places. The Kings’ Courier gained a larger number of students this year in comparison to previous seasons. The class increased from 16-18 to 21 students. Although this amount may not seem like a huge difference, a change in atmosphere, new faces, and all of the new friends. There are twelve new faces on the Courier and Cast staff this year. These new students include: seniors, Kennedy McLaughlin, Aftin Griffin, Bianca Panmei, Liberty Preston, and Kaison Hipsher-Walker; juniors, Mia Hall, Olivia Parker, and Kaity Shively; and freshmen: Hayden Tocco, Reynaldo Madrigal, Bella Wagoner, and Lynnsey Ramer. All of these students had their own reasons for joining this class in the first place. Aftin Griffin was asked what her motive was to join the class, and she replied, “I became interested in the class from watching former Cast videos on YouTube. It looked like a lot of fun, so I knew I wanted to join for my senior year.” Liberty Preston said, “The thing that motivated me to join the Kings’ Courier is the college major I am interested in. For a few years now, I have been wanting to study sports broadcasting in college, so I thought news and journalism would be the perfect class to help me learn editing and being on camera.” Others also said their hopes were to gain more confidence on camera, develop advanced writing skills, and learn more about the behind-the-scenes aspects of the Cast and Courier.
Although several students are freshmen or juniors on the staff, the class also has five new seniors, bringing the total to eight! Being a senior and joining a class that requires much time and energy can be overwhelming. All of the seniors were asked about how their experience has gone so far in the class. Kaison Hipsher-Walker said, “I’ve enjoyed being in the class so far. It’s been nice to be able to talk with my friends in class.” Bianca Panmei also said, “It is definitely different from my other classes with the filming and constant writing, but the atmosphere in the class is welcoming and freeing, which has made the whole experience enjoyable so far.” Other seniors also mentioned special moments that helped their experience be even better than they imagined.
Some might believe that more members in a class could cause more trouble or stir up problems, but in the Kings’ Courier, the more people there are, the more opportunities there are. At the start of the year, new students to the class are asked to state their goals for the year. Reynaldo Madrigal said, “The goals that I have for myself are to try not to procrastinate as much as I do already.” Having goals coming into a class that requires lots of time is very crucial in order to improve. Being able to create something for a small town school and make many students feel included through interviews, fun challenges, and many other things is something that the Kings’ Cast enjoys most. With many new, younger faces, the future looks very bright for the class, and a good mentoring experience for the older members. The Kings’ Courier and Cast will continue to push out amazing content and make Lewis Cass students’ weeks a little brighter.
