As many of you know, at the last meeting in May I proposed a change to the kind of club that Hackers would be.  While last year was really fun and we all learned a lot, I felt that we were stuck in a place where stuff didn't really get done.  We all certainly spent a lot of time WORKING on projects, but not enough of them were ever FINISHED.  I came away feeling like we needed a goal to really reach our potential.  I had a feeling that CTK News could be that goal.

News provides its own goal: publishing.  Without publishing it, what's the point of making news?  News provides its own motivation: deadlines.  If you don't make deadline, you don't get published.  And what's better than getting published?  Seeing our own work out there, for the world to see, for everyone to admire and enjoy.  It feels good.  So let's do it!

We're going to create three branches: written, video, and audio.  The written part is simple; it's going to be like a student newspaper, but published online.  Anyone in the school will be able to submit their own writing, art, or stories.  The video branch will be like a TV news show.  We're going to produce interviews, sports, and stories about the school community and tie them together in one show.  The audio part will be a podcast, telling stories in the style of news radio.  This will be a great way to share stories that we can't use video for, or to showcase some of the wonderful music that our students create.  All of this will be tied together by a website that will be designed and maintained by the Hackers.

I proposed this idea at the last meeting, and many of the students seemed excited about it.  I know that we have so many talented, creative, hardworking kids among us, that it's completely possible to develop an outstanding student news organization.  To make sure that everyone who attends is committed to that goal, I've asked that anyone who wants to join complete a short application.  You can find it online here.

We're going to need students working on many different jobs to pull this off.  Here's a list of positions that I can think of, and maybe you will come up with more ideas once we get rolling:

And just in case you need some motivation, please be aware that next year students will have to APPLY to join the Hackers club.  And for current members your Hackfolio will be the single most important part of your application!

Good luck!

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