Student Spotlight: Gabriel Shen and Lily Borofsky

For five years the Blake Bear Bugle has been a part of the Blake community, three of those years, in middle school. A newspaper like this doesn’t just happen, countless hours go into it, specifically from the editors.

Starting in 2021 editors: Gabriel Shen (current: Editor Emeritus; former: Editor in Chief) and Lily Borofsky (current: Editor in Chief) have been dedicated since the beginning. Whether it’s editing a writer's work, figuring out the new editing process, or collaborating with teachers they always try their best to make the issue work out in the end.

As some of the founders of the Blake Bear Bugle start to move on to Upper School, there needs to be more people to start to take over. “It’s [Blake Bear Bugle] based on strong student interest…” Ms. Kayla Nussbaum said in an interview with the Spectrum. In order to keep this newspaper going there needs to be people willing to give writing or formatting a try.

Interview:

How do you feel that this is your last year in the middle school, and therefore your last year with the Blake Bear Bugle?

Gabriel: I am very sad… There's so many things ending, and I was sad that LJ was leaving, and I was gonna miss all the 6th and 7th graders. So I'm sad.

Lily: I'm also extremely sad. But, you know, I have a little bit of a positive take. Look at all we've accomplished in these years. We have gone from being a really terrible 4th grade newspaper to a professional publication...we've come a long way. We've done a lot.

What is one wish that you have for the Blake Bear Bugle, for next year and for possibly the next 5 years?

Gabriel: That it continues. And that it gets an SNO website and that it's professionally printed, and a teacher decides to advise it… and that it continues for a long time. Like the Bear Facts...Just the old newspaper. The Bear Facts was the old student newspaper, and it lasted for a very long time, and it did a lot. And I hope that we can continue to be like that.

Lily: I also hope that it continues. And I want the next generation.. to take it wherever you want to take it, if it's a yearly publication, if it's quarterly…if you want to make a podcast, if you want to make a really cool, even better website, whatever direction you guys take it, I'm all for it. As long as it continues.

Gabriel: If it becomes a yearly... video, that's fine.

What's the hardest part about the Blake Bear Bugle?

Gabriel: The whole process... The hardest part is getting other people to participate and be part of it, and getting more people and more motivated people like you. It's run by a small group of students, so… the hardest part is getting more students to join. Well, getting more students to do stuff.

Lily: For me, that's obviously the hardest part is getting student interest. But for me also, keeping up with deadlines has been a challenge. Also scheduling everything, that's normally not my job, thankfully, but it is definitely a hard one.

Is there anything else you would like to say? Your final message.

Good luck. Good luck. And thank you to everyone, and for everything. Thanks.