I have always been passionate about journalism and in the craftsmanship of writing. The Escolarian is an avenue where I can hone my skills in storytelling by delivering facts and the truth. I chose The Escolarian because I stand by its mission— to be a journalist of great character and deliver the truth. I chose to stay in the organization not only because of the values it upholds but also because of the people who share the same passion and vision as me. All in all, being in The Escolarian felt like I’m surrounded by people who are working the same goal as me— which is to be a beacon of hope and light in times of misinformation, disinformation, and fake news.

The Escolarian is a publication where everyone just works together. There is no work that goes unnoticed and everyone is accounted for. Each of us plays a huge role that greatly affects us as a whole. The best part of being part of The Escolarian is being able to share my time and talent to an organization that stands by a great cause. Another bonus is being able to work with talented minds who are creatively expressing themselves while at the same time being grounded by facts.

To the incoming staffers and editorial board, it will be a tough ride and a lot of times your passion and love for journalism will be tested. Hardships may come along the way, during these times you must remember why you chose to join the organization. Your voice and writing is needed to amplify the truth that will open the eyes of many. Lagi’t laging para sa malaya na pamamahayag, padayon!

Richard Christian M. Uaje (Chief Layout Artist)

The Escolarian is a place where I could experiment with building a platform. I've always been interested in website building but never had the purpose of starting one. The Escolarian made me stay because I felt a sense of community among the staff, who were also very passionate about their work.

The best aspect of being part of The Escolarian is the freedom to experiment. The Escolarian is a great way to exchange thoughts and ideas, especially when you can do it in an environment where people are open-minded and share their knowledge freely.

As you begin this new journey, we are excited to see how you will grow The Escolarain. Keep up with the news around you, but don't just absorb it; consider how it affects our community and why individuals are speaking out on particular matters. Stay critical, stay curious. Be prepared to probe deeper than the surface to discover what's truly happening.

Llana Saena Santos (News and Opinion Editor)

It was not my intention to join any organizations because of this online set up, I was just asked by sir to take part as the News Editor of The Escolarian, and since I have the experience from my previous school and wala naman ako ginagawa sa bahay, I didn’t think twice and agreed. And I must say, it was definitely worth it. With the hardworking, friendly, and bright members of the org, I learned and enjoyed so much throughout the ups and downs of the org.

The best part of being part of The Escolarian is being surrounded by the best people who will push you to be better, support you and will believe in you kahit ‘di pa kayo nagkikita in person. The Escolarian will stand by your side, stand with you, through your ups and downs, your achievements and failures.

Good luck! It will be overwhelming but it is definitely worth it. There will be times na sa super dami ng ginagawa eh mapapasabi na lang kayo ng “ayaw ko na,” pero once na nakita niyo name niyo sa published article, fulfilling, mapapawi lahat ng sama ng loob and pagod niyo. You can always reach out to us na mga ates and kuyas niyo if need niyo ng help or someone to talk to. We, seniors, believe in you all and your abilities. Best of luck and do what makes your heart happy!

Abi J. Fernando (Features Editor)

A lifelong desire to write about the things I care about and the things I do has always been a part of who I am. Whenever I have some spare time or am feeling particularly creative, I like to indulge in the pastime of writing about subjects that interest me. It was when I was in elementary school that I first began to think that I might love doing this sort of thing. I joined several school media organizations ever since, so when Sir Raymond messaged me to see if I was interested in joining The Escolarian, I didn't think twice before responding with a firm "Yes!"

When you're passionate about your work, you'll always want to stick around since you're delighted with it and your heart wants to give your best effort. Also, I am pleased to continue my passion for writing and serving others so I chose The Escolarian as my organization for my SHS life.

The best part of The Escolarian is the people behind it. The team behind The Escolarian is full of supportive and encouraging people. Also, they're extremely dedicated to their work, which makes them the best. They always give their all and always aim to do better. I truly admire them a lot!

Continue to serve with passion! Your results will be better than you expected if you put your heart and soul into your work. Remember that it’s normal to experience periods of low motivation and drive. You have a long way to go, so slow down and take a breath. When things get tough, remember why you started!

Mykee L. Franco (News Correspondent)

I chose to join The Escolarian because it is an organization that serves as a safe and fun space for me and for other people who shares the same interest as mine when it comes to journalism, I thought it would be a good way for me to hone my skills and hopefully help me decrease my social anxiety. Thankfully The Escolarian organization did just that for me.

I believe that the best part of being a member of The Escolarian is the freedom that it gives us as we write articles. In this orgranization, we can write about our opinions, the events happening on both inside and outside our school, but most importantly, the truth that the people need to see or read on those topics that we tackle.

Bhea Christina F. Miranda (Feature Writer)

Writing has always been a way to cope with emotions. It is something that I cherish. In my senior year, I wanted to engage in extracurricular activities that can hone my skills as a writer. Fortunately, The Escolarian presented a great opportunity to students, including myself, despite their lack of experience in campus journalism. Truthfully, the entire journey was far from easy. I struggled a lot with time management and writer's block. However, quitting was not an option. Not when I received a lot of encouragement from other writers, my friends. Not when I had the liberty to express myself. Not when I can use my voice to raise awareness in various issues. It was for the love of this craft that I chose to join The Escolarian, and it was for the bond rooted in the love of this craft that I decided to stay.

The best part has to be the people. I have encountered many talented writers in The Escolarian, some are younger than me, but even more brilliant. It is an honor to read their works and hear their stories. Everyone in this organization is an inspiration. They make the decision to choose The Escolarian worth it.

Jann Michael P. Gomez (Feature Writer)

The nature of writing pushes me to be part of The Escolarian. I want to serve and write articles for The Escolarian and the readers. The healthy community and supportive members of The Escolarians are some of the significant reasons I chose to stay in the organization.

The best part of being in The Escolarian is the members and the environment that it has. It helps me a lot to go through my senior high school years despite this difficult setup

Laurice Franzel DC. Belgica (Copyreader, Social Media Manager, and Layout Artist)

To be honest, I do not have any plans of joining any extra curricular activities this school year. Na-anticipate ko na kasi na magiging mabigat yung workload ko considering na graduating na kami. However, noong nakareceive ako ng invitation from Sir Raymond at nakitang maraming open positions sa org, narealize ko na pwede pala ako magjoin kahit not as a writer at I think yung ibang positions ay mapapanindigan ko naman kahit konti lang yung time ko ganern. Although ang experience ko ay sa pagsusulat, triny ko na ang piliin ay socmed manager at copyreader kasi feeling ko mas maeenjoy ko na magbasa/magpublish ng gawa ng iba kesa ako mismo yung gumagawa. In short, I chose The Escolarian kasi I find the other positions interesting and I want to learn more about how editorial works are done aside sa perspective ng pagiging writer.

What made me stay? Yung opportunity na binibigay sakin ng bawat members. Hindi lang kasi ako nalimit sa isang gawain. Hindi lang ako naging taga publish ng pubmats at taga proofread ng articles. Hinayaan din ako ni Chief Layout Artist (Richard) na mag layout ng pubmats at newspaper natin. Dahil dun, nadiscover ko na masaya ako sa paglalayout and kahit papano may talent pala ako sa pagdedesign ganern.

I think yung pagkakaroon ng kumustahan tuwing may meeting tayo. I find it helpful kasi nagkakaroon tayo ng parang "refresher" at "break" sa academic responsibilities natin. At the same time, nakakakilala ako ng iba't ibang tao at naiinspire ako kasi ang passionate ng bawat isa. Through those kumustahans narerealize ko na although virtually lang tayo nagfufunction, matatag pa rin yung teamwork natin at lahat kayang makipagcoordinate.

Alyssa Mariz F. Bebar (Social Media Manager and Layout Artist)

I've always imagined myself taking a journalism-related course in college. However, things suddenly changed and I decided to pursue nursing instead. I guess you can say that it's my "the one that got away" dream. When I found out about The Escolarian, I was very intrigued and decided to join. I was excited and nervous. I thought to myself that since I would not be able to take up journalism as a course, why not join The Escolarian instead? So, I took the opportunity to join the organization. I wanted to be able to feel and experience what it is to be a staffer, even in just a short amount of time.

The best part about being a member of The Escolarian is meeting new people and contributing my skills as a staffer. I will forever be grateful to be part of the team. Thank you, The Escolarian! 💙💛

Chelsey Cassandra D. Alcaraz (Layout Artist)

I remember being asked the same question by our mentor during org orientation. The answer remains the same, I believe that the Escolarian will be a learning ground for me, and in my stay, it proved me right. Not only did I become confident in my creative output but also I was given a voice to speak up about things I would not be able to normally.

There's nothing more fulfilling than being proactive at school and serving as a voice for fellow students all while being in four corners of a room. In other words, The Escolarian gave me an opportunity to be better holistically. Being part of this organization is more than writing articles, creating layouts, and posting pubmats. It fosters freedom of speech and camaraderie. In my role as a layout artist, I would definitely miss the "Pwede ka ba mag-layout?" and the "Gusto mo ba sumama mag-layout?" as it fuels my passion for journalism and has been the driving force to show my creative approach on everything that I do.

Francine Leeane L. Espiritu (Layout Artist)

I chose The Escolarian because I was also a part of our school’s media organization in junior high school. Despite the exceptional situation we are facing, I am confident that joining this organization would give me the chance to experience a stimulating and collaborative environment and be exposed to a wide range of viewpoints. I decided to stay at The Escolarian because I figured it would be the perfect choice for me to further develop my expertise and skills in layout design.

Finding new creative ways to express myself as a layout artist was the best part of being a member of The Escolarian.

Ayessa Julienne N. Lunita (Layout Artist)

It was blurry to me, but as far as I could remember, I think it was the early days of the academic year, and I heard the news of the reopening of the clubs. The Escolarian was the first to appear on my Facebook timeline, and I was fascinated by their posts. When I saw that they were recruiting staffers, I thought since it was the last year of my senior high school and I had nothing to do, maybe I could join The Escolarian. I decided to keep being in the club because it was fun seeing the process of how an article gets published. It was also fun learning new stuff from everyone.

I can say that the best part of being part of The Escolarian is I can learn while having fun with my colleagues. Even though I did not talk a lot, it was fun seeing the discussions in the group chat and the small talks during our meetings.

Kristen M. Ramos (Social Media Manager)

The main reason why I chose to be part of The Escolarian is because I know that it would greatly contribute and serve as an avenue for me to develop my skills and improve them in the process. With the help of our team and our very supportive technical adviser, I realized that I can still utilize my past experiences in journalism and use it for a good cause. Staying was a choice, and I'm glad I chose to be part of a great team until the end of our term.

Joining The Escolarian was one of the most unexpected yet unforgettable moments I experienced in my senior year because it did not just helped me hone my skills but it also made me realize that I can still manage to contribute to an esteemed organization despite the pandemic. For me, the best part of being in this organization is that I get to work with people that have the same passion as mine, and that I get to be a part of the great team that revived and made a come back of the school publication after two years.

Drew Halle M. Sibayan (Layout Artist)