Sasha Chernikov is a freshman student excited to write for The Beacon. Chernikov previously attended Ponce de Leon Middle and although MAST Academy is intimidating to her, she is, “happy to be here.” Journalism is interesting to her because she loves informative writing and looks forward to “reinterpreting” stories. She would consider a career in journalism in the future. One thing you can expect from her as a reader is that she will “deliver the truth”, Chernikov says. You can also expect some sports profiles from her as she loves interviewing people and anything athletic.

Bárbara León, a 14-year-old student at MAST Academy in Virginia Key, is taking a journalism course for the first time. She was born in Venezuela but moved to Miami when she was four years old. She lives in Downtown Miami with her mom and stepdad. León speaks Spanish as her first language but also knows English. She recently started attending MAST Academy and enjoys the location and environment. Despite having no prior interest or experience in journalism, she decided to take the course to improve her writing skills and to learn about journalism. León believes she will enjoy the class because she likes writing and covering stories. She is also interested in trying out beach volleyball, as she already plays court volleyball. León loves the beach and enjoys hanging out with friends and visiting beach towns like Naples and Cocoa Beach. Additionally, she is learning Portuguese to communicate with her family and French at school with her favorite teacher, Ms. Jasmin. Overall, León is excited about the new school year and the opportunities it brings. “I look forward to a successful new school year and new experiences” León said.

Camila Gomez is a freshman and journalist at MAST Academy. This is her first year here at MAST and her first time trying out journalism. She’s looking forward to writing for The Beacon. “I chose journalism because language arts is my favorite subject and it sounded fun” she says. Gomez’s decided on coming to MAST for the location, as well as the academics. “I actually almost went to Immaculata-La Salle High School but eventually decided on MAST,” Gomez said. Besides school Gomez really enjoys American football. “If this school had American football I would love to cover it for the newspaper.”