When sophomore Sarah Bol entered The Paper Cut her freshman year, she finally found her voice through the power of journalism. Sarah likes to read, write, and work out. When Sarah graduates, she plans to attend the University of Arizona to continue studying journalism and work on The Daily Wildcat.

I’m not an aggressive person, I’m not a fighter, I’m not confrontational, but I have a weapon. That weapon is my voice. My voice as a journalist is inviolable and it will change the world. “I still believe that if your aim is to change the world, journalism is a more immediate short-term weapon,” said Tom Stoppard, playwright and screenwriter.

Last year I was placed in Sahuaro High School’s journalism class. The class is centered around writing for the school newspaper, The Paper Cut. I didn’t believe that I had a voice – or at least not a strong enough one for the media. After being in the class for two years, I now know I have the potential to create something shockingly beautiful.

The moment I realized I could make a difference was gradual. I was just a freshman who didn’t know what she was going to do in life, or how to escape the gaping hole of not knowing who I was. It all started in the first semester of last year when I was writing a homecoming article. That day was my first ever time using a professional camera, assisted by my Editor-In-Chief, Marley. That night we were reporting on the sidelines together, and she showed me how to properly cover a live sports event. Even though it was my first time, she trusted me in the field and made me feel like I had the true power to speak for the students of my high school.

With every article I wrote, I felt more and more like maybe the media was a place for me. The beginning of my sophomore year was the real solidifier. I walked into the newsroom like it was any other day when I was pulled into our interview room by my Editor-In-Chief. She told me, and 4 other students, that we were all the 2024-2025 editors. By my sophomore year, after only one year of journalism experience, I was good enough to become an editor over some seniors in the class.

The smell of wet grass on the football field as players almost ram into you on the sideline doesn’t exactly sound like the best way to spend most people’s time, but being out there reporting on the things that matter, and more importantly, the things that people enjoy, is worth my time of day. From breathing in the crisp late-night air while writing on the patio to hearing, “That’s a great article Sarah; it’s going in the showcase,” as my Editor-In-Chief grinned at me from her desk. The chills that ran through my body still create shockwaves of emotion that well up in my eyes.

Now, I will do whatever it takes to write my best and create an image that can haunt a reader’s mind. One day I’ll write in the news publications that I read for my small school newspaper. My passion for the things I love brings me back to this school every day.

But once I get out of this place, I’m going to the University of Arizona to major in journalism and minor in photojournalism or principles of multimedia. Hopefully, I’ll work on their newspaper The Daily Wildcat, and one day when I revisit these halls and walk past the painted-over newsroom, I’ll always thank The Paper Cut for igniting the voice inside me.