It had been over three years and 1000 days since high school journalists last gathered on the campus of KU for the annual Jayhawk Media Workshop.

The Jayhawk Media Workshop is a camp where journalism students from different high schools in Kansas spend five days at the University of Kansas in Lawrence. The activities include improving their skills by making content to help better their skills in multimedia storytelling, design, reporting, yearbook theme & planning, leading a news system, photography, yearbook design and copy, writing & editing, and advising. 

This summer, Maize and Maize South had six students (along with instructors Spencer O’Daniel and Madison Loomis) attended the five-day journalism camp.

Maize South yearbookers Alexa Harris, Addison Rickard and Julia Higares enrolled in the Yearbook Theme & Planning course to help improve their yearbook staff. Maize High videographers Riley Froelich, Andrew Percival and Leah Brown enrolled in the Multimedia/Broadcasting course to learn more about how to put a video story together and other media ways to put stories together for their news website.

Junior Julia Higares is a student a Maize South and a part of the yearbook staff at her school.  Higares chose to take the Yearbook Theme & Planning workshop with adviser Madison Loomis. She said that she thinks it will help out her yearbook staff back at MSHS. 

“I chose Yearbook Theme & Planning so I can prove to my yearbook staff that they can count on me to have some more ideas to have set theme for next year, it is truly a good experience,” Higares said. 

Andrew Percival is a senior at Maize High is editor for Seamless Productions. Percival was asked by his advisor, Spencer O’Daniel, to attend the multimedia storytelling workshop at the JMW camp to better his leadership and video skills.

“I have a lot of interests, but videography hits harder than most. That is why I chose to attend the Multimedia Storytelling workshop,” Percival said. 

Higares enjoyed having her roommate in her dorm as a peer and a friend. 

“Addy is one of my friends from MSHS and she is also taking the same workshop as me, so it has really been a fun experience,” Higares said. “One night, around 10 or 11, Alexa, Addy, and I went to the bathroom to do some Tik-Toks, which was really fun.”

Percival was really fascinated with the KU basketball arena and all of the different places on the KU campus.

“I know I may not go to KU, not because it’s a bad school, but just because it isn’t for me. But, one thing that is fascinating is the basketball arena and just being on Jayhawk grounds,” Percival said. 

Higares knows that for a leadership position in charge of the yearbook staff, all of the experience she had this week will benefit her next school year.

“I think, taking from what I have learned, being able to bring the class together is super important, as well as getting everyone to give their best so we can improve,” Higares said. 

Madison Loomis decided to get involved in the Jayhawk Media Workshop because she believed it would be a good experience for her and her yearbook students to attend. 

“I wanted students and I to attend the workshop because it offers such a wonderful experience, and with the skills we have learned, it will help when we return to MSHS. One thing that we already figured out is our Yearbook theme, which is a big stress reliever,” Loomis said. 

Percival has never had the opportunity to be a producer in the studio before and was excited but nervous all at the same time.

“O’Daniel asked me to be the producer, so I said yes. I have been editing for our big video in the multimedia storytelling workshop, as well as writing scripts, etc.”  Percival said. 

A week ago, Loomis believed that her and the MSHS students were not going to be able to make it up to Lawrence due to budget issues.

“Originally, I didn’t think that the MSHS students and I would be able to attend the JMW. We were having some financial difficulties, but Kerry Navinsky helped by paying for our cost, and it means so much to the students and I,” Loomis added. “Since we are hoping to bring another set of students next summer, the students will be doing a lot of fundraising if they want to come.”

Higares knows she will take back several specific ideas with her to MSHS yearbook staff to better their yearbook theme for their 2022-2023 yearbook.

“I definitely think team bonding, photoshop skills, designing books, taking some different approaches on design will help us out very much. But mostly to remember, to be simple and don’t overthink,” Higares said. 

Higares enjoyed everything about the Jayhawk Media Workshop and believes it will help her future in journalism.

“Coming to this college campus, just really showed me how it’s going so fast, and it is finally hitting me how fast everything is going but this is one of the most important experiences that will help me in my journalism career,” Higares said.