NICHOLASVILLE, Ky. (LEX 18) — A group of sixth-grade students at West Jessamine Middle School have created a new digital newspaper called "The Colt Chronicle," giving students a platform to make their voices heard.
The student-led publication, which released its first edition Friday morning, covers topics ranging from mental health and trends to art, comics, and sports.
"Our topics cover everything middle schoolers care about, like mental health, trends, art, comics, sports, you name it. We curate everything based off of what middle schoolers feel," said Chilton.
Rowan Chilton, the newspaper's founder and editor-in-chief, started the publication after noticing a gap in student communication.
"I did notice that there was a lack of connection between peers, and I also noticed that the school had a lack of a newspaper, so I made one," said Chilton.
Teacher Melanie Clark is an advisor for the publication, but gives full credit to the young journalists for their work.
"When they were able to bring their voices in and their own passions and things in, I'm like, oh my gosh, my job just became easier," said Clark.
Chilton manages a full editorial team of 12 students and worked closely with friends Amelia Rupp, Sloane Gregory, and Kynlee McInturf to launch the newspaper.
"Everyone is so supportive and nice, and we're all so talented, and I just love getting to work with them," said McInturf.
The students hope their work will inspire others to join the publication.
"I hope that they really enjoy it and that some of them will want to join it because I think that we could definitely have some more writers," said Rupp.
For the students involved, the project has been rewarding on multiple levels.
"It's a really cool experience to be a part of because it's just you know that you did something good for your school, and it makes you feel pretty good," said Gregory.
Chilton expressed pride in the team's accomplishments with the newspaper.
"It makes me feel very proud of what I put my name on and the people that are on my writing team," said Chilton.
The next edition of The Colt Chronicle will be published on May 16. Chilton also hopes to expand coverage with a podcast in the future.
Below is the first issue of The Colt Chronicle:
The Colt Chronicle - Issue No. 1 by LEX18News on Scribd
