By: Grayson Porter
Being a part of Youth and Government, as a delegate and an officer, has provided me with some of the best times of my life. From learning how to hone my skills in journalism or learning how to socialize in professional settings, YG has taught me an array of skills I can use in my future.
My freshman year I joined Print Media to spend time with friends and to meet people outside of my school. I was intimidated by the idea of failure my first year, but regardless I was able to push past my fear and help contribute to my first “Golden Gavel” newspaper. I was so proud of my 150-word article on the bottom of the last page that I cut it out and hung it in my room. As my skills in writing grew, I slowly found myself working my way up the Print Media ladder – eventually earning the title of Print Editor.
Using the tools and skills I have learned through my administrators and peers, I have been pleased and honored to be the student leader in charge of Print Media. With the help of the great media staff and administrators, I am delighted with our output of articles this 2017 Texas YG conference. Even while the Print Media department has changed through the years, so has media itself and so have I. As this program has grown, I have grown right along side with it. I have seen myself develop my own writing style and a way for me to properly explain my views.
Youth and Government has impacted me, and the program has helped me find my love of journalism and of news. If I can leave the program with one thing, I would want to leave it with the knowledge that media is not disappearing. While journalism practices and the structure of Youth and Government media may change, the distribution of news is something that will never change.
I will forever be grateful for the connections I have made during my time at these conferences, and I will continue to uphold my Y-core values for the remainder of my life.