I was always told that my diagnosis for ADHD should not affect my performance. I disagree.

I had always had trouble focusing on my schoolwork, listening to others and frequently fidgeting. I did not go to a psychiatrist until junior year, where he told me I was in the 90th percentile for ADHD. He did give me medications, but I was denied specific plans to aid me in my performance at school. 

Ever since COVID-19, mental health diagnoses have been increasingly persistent. According to The National Institutes of Health, “Rates of anxiety, depression, and substance use disorder have increased since the beginning of the pandemic.” 

Whether it is anxiety, depression, ADHD or other severe forms of disorders, many students have found it hard to perform at school, work and sports. Little accommodations and leeway are provided for students, even with a real diagnosis from a psychiatrist. 

Students absorb the pressure of school constantly, including all of the assignments, tests, papers and finals that are thrown their way. But students experiencing mental disorders, even at a lower level, explode with the persistent demand for excellence. According to the Suicide Prevention Resource Center, “Many college students report that mental health difficulties interfere with their studies.” 

With countless students feeling the same way, it is hard to ignore the necessity for change. Also, with limited amounts of plans to distribute for aid, many students who do experience mental troubles aren’t given the support and resources they need.

It’s also difficult to express mental disorders to teachers, because some do not take them seriously, as it wasn’t prominent in their lives as students. Many professors and teachers believe students are utilizing the opportunity to gain advantages over other students, when they aren’t the ones who actually need help. 

To accommodate for the situation at hand, teachers and students should be well educated on what mental illnesses and health actually entail. Many could be uneducated about the real impacts these illnesses have on others, and could further expand the amount of support these students with the illnesses require. Although teachers cannot give weeks worth of leeway to students, they can work with students to make sure they understand the information and feel more comfortable and confident. This would also strengthen teacher and student relationships, advocating for a good relationship with a teacher that the student can trust. 

Mental health is not a joke. While many may not believe in it, or make fun of someone who experiences it, it is extremely fundamental to understand the importance of mental health. Those who seem well may not always be, and increasing support for people in need might just save a life.

Students passionately believe that Joe Dennis, the current Piedmont University chair of communication, should permanently teach journalism full-time at the University of Georgia.

“Nobody wants a boring teacher,” said Hunter Pitrak, one of Joe’s students at UGA’s summer academy. “I feel like I would definitely go into journalism at UGA if I knew he was going to be my professor.”

Joe Dennis attended the University of Georgia, where he received his PhD in Mass Communications. Now, he is currently the mass communications chair at Piedmont University, where he teaches students during the regular school year. However, during the summer, Joe returns to the University of Georgia to teach at the summer academy, and continues to get invited back each summer.

“I think UGA has a really good journalism program,” said Joe. “When you combine it with the Red & Black, (UGA’s independent student newspaper) it’s a one-two punch that I think is one of the best in the country.”

Joe has allowed his various experiences to shape the way he views people, as he portrays his love for people and their differences through teaching. Teachers expressing real passion for their work and their students are difficult to encounter. The prominent Grady College of Journalism & Mass Communication program at UGA could further benefit with humorous and genuine professors like Joe, who truly make an impact on students.

“Joe is a very engaging teacher,” said Elsa Block, who traveled all the way from California to attend UGA’s journalism class during the summer. “He is very positive and funny.”

Mixing comedy with learning creates successful teaching styles, as many of Joe’s students have agreed that they have learned more in his class than any other journalism teacher, making Joe a valuable professor that UGA should undoubtedly consider. 

“Teaching with humor allows the students to enjoy it and relate to it more,” said Maika Walker, another attendant of UGA’s summer academy. 

If Joe were to expand his career onto UGA, the amount of students he would surely impact would increase significantly. Joe, who is obviously very qualified, would be one of UGA’s greatest professors, continuing to teach with a permanent smile. 

“I think UGA would most definitely benefit from a professor like Joe,” said Keshondra Shipp, who just recently graduated from UGA with her masters degree in journalism and mass communication. “I think he’s a hidden gem, and I don’t think many people know about him. But I think he’s great.”

Have film companies and producers really lost their spark? Film enthusiasts and experts say yes.

“They make a lot of unoriginal stuff now,” said Eli Saliba, the production coordinator at Athena Studios in Athens. “They make a lot of remakes and a lot of spinoffs. I think they have the opportunity to be good, but there are certain things that production companies know will make money for them, like Star Wars and Harry Potter.”

Saliba and many others in the film industry state that franchises like Marvel, Star Wars and Harry Potter continue to produce spinoffs that are not necessarily better than the original, but still create revenue because millions of people are part of the fandom and feel as if they must see it. However, original ideas that many have never heard of might not produce as much revenue, because these movies do not have a specified fandom yet, making people not feel the necessity to see them. This further persuades producers to stick with what they know will bring large revenue. 

“I think it’s not so much that they (film producers) are running out of ideas, it’s that they are running out of time,” said film enthusiast Alex Cook, a student at the UGA summer academy. “I think because of Tik Tok and YouTube, they have to speed themselves up to pick up with culture because trends move so fast.”

To test the thesis statement that older movies generally outmatch newer movies, a poll was conducted within a journalism class at UGA, with ages ranging from 13 to 46. The poll asked what students and professors favorite movie was, with results stating that 77% of the movies declared were movies produced before 2010, giving evidence that older production and creativity is in fact preferable.

Further, to eliminate any bias towards the question, some students were asked what their favorite movie produced later than 2010 is. Student Hunter Pitrak from Georgia, said her “favorite movie post 2010 is the new version of “The Little Mermaid” .” 

Another student, Elsa Block from California, said “ “Spider-Man: No Way Home” is my favorite newer movie.” 

The movies that the students chose, the new version of The Little Mermaid and Spider-Man: No Way Home, further reinforce the statement that movie production has lost their spark. The new “The Little Mermaid” is exactly like the original, but without the animation aspect. Spider-Man has been a character in the Marvel Franchise since 1962, and although new storylines have been produced, the same character has been in use for more than 60 years.

Even people like Keshondra Shipp, a teacher assistant at the UGA summer academy, who haven’t seen many movies believe that movie producers have lost their imagination. “I think that movies tell a story, and to some degree, there’s some truth to it,” she says. “Some of the newer ones tell a story, but the question is if that story is good or not.”

Hello everyone! My name is Amanda Michaels, but I go by Mandie. I live in Milton, Georgia, and attend Milton High School. I will be a senior in the fall, with an interest in journalism and media production. I have always loved to creatively write, whether it be fiction stories, school papers, or just what I am feeling in the moment, and feel that I can write better than I can speak. I do not have a lot of experience in journalism, but what sparked my interest was a class I took in my junior year called AP Seminar. In AP Seminar, we had numerous projects and papers on different topics of interests, which allowed me to choose whatever I wanted to write about and dive deeper into unknown subjects. Although it was very stressful, it ended up being my favorite class.

I have played tennis since I was 7, starting in Long Island, New York. However, Long Island was not huge on tennis, and I rarely played until I moved to Milton in 2015. From there, my neighborhood had tennis lessons from Wes Adams, who is still my coach to this day. I have played numerous leagues including ALTA, USTA and T2, and played on my high school JV team my freshman and sophomore year. I still play club tennis, and volunteer to teach at my mom’s tennis academy for older women. Tennis has always been a huge part of my family life, and I hope to attend a college where I can play club tennis and continue it further.

Whenever I have free time, I usually will be with my friends, either playing video games, shopping, or getting food. I have two cats, Bruce and Cookie, whom I have had since I lived in New York. I also have a sister, Megan, who is 14 and entering high school this year. She is one of my best friends, and we always do everything together. My mom and dad are the people who inspire me the most, and are also some of my best friends. That might sound lame, but my family really is great. Whenever I am busy, it is usually because of my job. I work as a hostess and a busser at Campania, a small Italian restaurant. My favorite thing about working there is the people, who I probably talk to more than I actually work.

UGA has always been one of my top picks for college ever since I moved to Georgia. But, even if I do not get in, I know everything happens for a reason and there is a college out there for me!