12 seconds.

That’s about the longest a professional track and field sprinter will be on the track racing during a competition.

In 12 seconds history can be made, dreams have a chance to be fulfilled and hearts are broken.

Track and Field is an individual sport. Each athlete is responsible for every loss, every upset and every win. This makes every moment so much more passionate and important. Like every sport, professional track and field has had long standing rivalries that push athletes to their limits and make each athlete want that beautiful gold medal just a little bit more. The most notable of those rivalries is the competition between American and Jamaican runners. For decades now, competitors from these two countries have battled closely and hard for first place.

The Paris summer Olympics 2024 showcased this rivalry in one of the closest men’s 100 meter dash races in Olympic history. USA’s Noah Lyles won gold after a neck and neck finish with Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson. The race was so close that announcers actually stated, or assumed, that Thompson had won the race before results were posted, and ended up being incorrect. Lyles winning the 100m mens final that year, especially with the race being so close with a Jamaican runner, only further fueled the rivalry between countries.

From old competitors like Jamaican Usain Bolt and American Justin Gatlin to modern day Kishane Thompson and Noah Lyles, the USA vs. Jamaica rivalry has made its impact and continues to showcase phenomenal athletes and promising talent for future competitions. The next championship meet is September 2026.

Now the question is, will the rivalry continue with each country securing wins back and forth?

Or will a champion emerge and settle the long lasting struggle?

It’s one thing to help resolve a current issue by writing about it and bringing its attention to the public, but it’s another to take action and make a change by personally stepping in and getting involved. Joe Dennis’s career in journalism gives him the opportunity to experience real world events first hand. Joe believes strongly in the power of making connections and that as a result it will get you far in any part of life, especially in the journalism industry. 

In an interview Joe said, “One of the most important things that you can do is every time you contact someone just be very friendly with them and make sure you save their phone numbers in your phone and who they are and what they work for, because you never know when a source could come through for you.”

This attitude opened many doors for him and allowed him access to more viewpoints and situations. In one instance because of a relationship he’d previously built, he was called to report on a meth-lab drug bust to get the chance to spend 20 hours with a unit. He’s also 

had the opportunity to speak to many celebrities, including: John Mayer, Chris Jericho, and Isaiah Thomas. One of the most impactful people he’s reported on however, is a judge.

Joe spent several months checking in with and writing about a judge who was on the waitlist for an organ transplant. He got to know the family well and would bond over dinners together, updating his writing as to his status and current position on the waitlist. Tragically, the judge was not able to make it through to the top of the waitlist and passed away. 

Joe remarked on how this impacted him to take action, “…he died when he was number 12 on the waitlist. When he died that really was powerful to me and that day I became an organ donor. I went to the drivers license facility and became an organ donor just because I saw the impact that organ donation can really have on people, how few organ donors there are and how it would have just taken a few more people to keep him alive.”

Joe Dennis’s experiences as a journalist demonstrate that reporting is about more than telling stories, but about building meaningful connections, understanding people’s lives, and telling their stories through their lens. Through his dedication to developing personal relationships, he gained unique opportunities that shaped both his career and his perspective on life. His story shows how journalism doesn’t just inform the public but inspires personal action and meaningful change.

What makes a strong relationship? Perhaps mutual respect, affection or trust? What about whether you have ever met them in person? Or whether they are a person at all?

According to research from the Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT), nearly 1 in 5 high school students either know someone who has, or have themselves been in a relationship with artificial intelligence.

As it seems, relationships are evolving. Not just in the way that they develop, but also in the way they are perceived and defined.

As technology advances, many are turning towards new avenues for romantic (and platonic) fulfillment. They are instead becoming more interested in exploring relationships through social media or Large Language Models (LLM) rather than pursuing interpersonal connections.

While responses to this information are polarizing, it does raise questions as to why many are feeling the need to turn to alternative solutions. In addition, what long-term effects will be inflicted upon society if these practices become normalized?

This future, filled with the normalization of AI relationships, is not as far away as it seems. Local high school student, Uriana Powell, recognizes differences in behavior in peers after they begin using AI. They consult LLM’s like ChatGPT to solve relationship problems, speak for them conversationally or for emotional support. Powell comments, “I mean, I love all my friends, but I do encourage her to be herself. Humans are way more creative than AI…we are unique in our own way,”.

So, why exactly is the youth being impacted in this way? As reported by The American Psychological Association, “Humans are hardwired to anthropomorphize, or ascribe human traits to nonhuman objects. Digital companions are purposely designed to evoke such a response…”. This outlines the possibility that the emotional bond produced between humans and Large Language Models is largely due to the intentional manufacturing of the AI chatbots, and not the fault of those affected.

Contrary to the development of AI companionship being relatively new, the integration of social media interaction has been around for a few decades, but has increasingly gotten worse. As stated in National Library of Medicine, “Social media, integral to contemporary life, offers significant connectivity and entertainment benefits… [it has] given rise to social media addiction, particularly among teenagers, characterized by excessive screen time, compulsive checking, and detrimental effects on real-life relationships…”

In conversation with high school student, Fiona McGaraghan, she spoke a bit about how she faced real F.O.M.O due to social media, “Fear of missing out is a big one, just seeing posts of other friends doing stuff, and wishing I was there.”

McGaraghan continues, “Social media, both using it, and the culture around it has had a negative impact because it feels like people are centered around it in terms of social behavior.” Later, McGaraghan recounted feeling excluded more often, due to her being able to actively see things she was missing out on online, not just conversations, but entire shared experiences.

While the technological integration of society is not entirely negative, the perception is that the way it negatively impacts others outweighs the way it positively impacts them. Sam Crumly, high school student, stated that he noticed clear differences in his behavior after using tools like social media and generative AI; specifically he noticed that the content he was receiving was largely tuned to him and his opinion so he felt as though he wasn’t being as intellectually challenged.

Crumly stated, “I understand that most of the stuff I am looking at is skewed to the way I would like to hear it, and my perspective…it just kind of numbs my brain a little bit.”

In reference to romantic relationships or situations, Crumly mentions that he felt a bit negatively impacted due to the use of LLM’s. “I think I asked AI for a pickup line, like once…they don’t know what they are doing…” Crumly continues, “I have taken advice from social media on some things, honestly most of the time it’s not really good.”

As the relationships of youth continue to evolve, the integration of technology will likely remain present. Only time will tell if that integration will be focused on prioritizing the mental state and health of the youth rather than their constant gratification, and addiction. Many hope that the direction that relationships take will be more geared towards emotional connection, rather than artificial fulfillment, and ultimately, rewarding those that foster strong human-based relationships.

“We may be five to six generations removed from the horrors of slavery, but the trauma of enslavement has been carried by African Americans through the ages” says therapist Dr. Erica Wilkins. “The system of slavery was predicted on the belief that African Americans are inferior, and that systematic inequality still persists today.”

Chattel slavery, which consisted of the violent capture and enslavement of Africans, commenced the dehumanization of black people around the world. 161 years later, what seems like a distant memory of tragic events continues to affect the black community.

But how does this tie into slavery? CapitalBnews writes in an article that “Enslavers went to great lengths to prevent physicians from treating enslaved africans ailments, frequently accusing them of “malingering.” It’s nothing new that black patients pain is ignored. That same article later states “It’s estimated that around 8.8 million black Americans died prematurely between 1900 and 2015 because of the racial health gap,” the same racial gap that had already deemed black people as “genetically different” for 100s of years.

The discrimination doesn’t stop at America, thousands of miles away in the continent of Africa, black africans continue to suffer due to slavery’s affects. The brutal capturing of 12 million young African men and women took away the possibility of development in Africa and replaced it with damaging systems put in place by colonizers. A Fairplanet article says “The most pronounced impact of slavery on contemporary Africa is racism and skewed value judgements that created class, social status and respect based on colour.” Another paragraph states that “Researchers argue that there would have been 112 million more africans if there was no slave trade.” This population would have increased Africas development but without it the continent fell behind.

400 years ago, the transatlantic slave trade began and with it came racism. Although this racism is still prevalent in today’s society, the black community continues to work toward healing. In 1964 Malcolm X said that “we declare our right on this earth, to be a man, to be a human being, to be respected as a human being, in this society, on this earth, in this day and night, which we intend to bring into existence by any means necessary.” 62 years later the black community is still fighting for the respect Malcolm X spoke of, the peace black children dream of, and the end of a racist era black people still suffer from.

June, 9, 2026

Are college athletes perfect? Some assume so, some disagree.

College athletes have some of the most pressure placed on them every game. Especially college athletes who strive in football or baseball. Athletes who play football or baseball have the expectations from their teams, of the likes of a MLB (Major Baseball League) , and a NFL (National Football League) athlete over their heads. Even when they aren’t on the field, their minds are running back and forth about their performance, practice, or anything to do with their athletic scholarships.

Sports can easily have a huge psychological effect on someone. Stress, Depression, Burnout, Substance Abuse, and more. Athletes usually develop these to survive under the pressure of reality and live up to the standards of fellow team mates and coaches. In Oct. 2023, Brown University held a studying discovered that around 30% of college athletes will eventually quit their sport due to physical and mental exhaustion. As many colleges across the country notice this behavior in their athletes, they try to ensure that their athletes maintain stable mental health by having equitable access to counselors and other comfort sources to improve and uphold their performance. Even though student athletes have resources to turn to if they’re struggling, they can quite easily be replaced if a coach suspects the player constantly struggling, this creates hesitation for players to reach out for help while knowing it could cost them they’re athletic career. As football players miss classes for practice, and baseball players miss so many hours of school due to sport travel and packed schedules. Academic pressure can increase on the athlete due to these rules.

If a college athlete is falling behind in academic performance, they are legally required to be benched until their grades reach standards again due to the National College Players Association. On field performance can cause exhaustion and stress which can lead to severe sleep loss from worrying. Being unable to sleep can greatly impact an athletes grades. Their grades can begin decline drastically which can lead to the legal ineligibility to play causing them become benched during games. After this process, it’s also very likely that the athletes will turn to substitutes to fill loose time which leads to substance abuse and mental exhaustion.

Although for baseball, it’s a bit different. Baseball players do need as much required academic excellence as college football does. College football usually only competes on Saturdays, baseball is a constant fast paced grind. A regular baseball season can average up to 56 games in a single semester. With this information, This can mean four to five baseball games per week with consistent travel and practices. While football must earn 9 credits during their fall semester to be considered for next years team. In baseball, they must earn only 6 credits during the fall semester to become eligible for next years team. Another challenge is that the NCAA Regionals are held in late April and early May, which are also the times colleges and universities are holding all final exams. This can cause tremendous stress among student athletes.

In Dec. 2023, the NCAA Student-Athlete Health and Wellness Study conducted a study for college athletes. It was shown that up to 45% of college athletes experience constant mental stress due to intense athletics, around 24% experience clinical depression, and over 55% participate in heavy substance abuse. This data clearly demonstrates how college athletes are affected by the industry.

College American Football, Golf and Cheerleading are a couple of the most mentally demanding sports while college baseball is one of the most strategic team sports. College football and baseball are two of the most fan hyped sports in the world. College sports are the most watched and cheered for sports in America at the moment. So maybe college athletes aren’t perfect, and they don’t always win, but they try their best.

Journalism, is a profession with the very rare quality of both being timeless, ever-changing and wholly necessary in society. This requires journalists to both remain true to the practice while still adapting. Many journalists, like Morgan Hardy, a second year masters student at the University of Georgia. Pursuing her degree in journalism and mass communication, has been evolving with the changes in a variety of ways.

“People my age are really trying to start a change of format in journalism,” said Hardy. “We’re not just talking heads, we’re people.”

Hardy has stated her concern with AI, stating that her biggest struggle has been dealing with its newfound prevalence in the journalism field. “I think AI can become very dangerous over time if we’re not watching it closely.” Hardy went on to explain how the job market right now is filled with job offerings to edit articles written by AI rather than actually writing anything, unfortunately.

But even as prevalent as this problem has become, Hardy advocated that journalism is more than just reporting a story, it’s also about the person writing it. Which is something that AI can’t replicate as “AI loses the emotion of a story.” 

In response to AI’s ascendancy, many journalists, Hardy included, have adapted their passion for journalism into different medium and styles. “You won’t known until you have tried,” said Hardy, who’s experimented with all forms of journalism from broadcasts and newspapers to documentaries. “So I tried multiple forms of journalism to see which one stuck.”

After much experimentation, Hardy said that she was taking the steps to work in digital media. “Because digital media is so big right now, especially with all of the changes with AI, I just want to be a part of that change and what’s going to happen next.”

This adaptation and willingness to transform, especially to combat the issue at hand as she’s doing, will enable Hardy to prevail in her career. Hardy reflects the unwavering resiliency of journalism as she’s adapted throughout her career. Through every new hurdle it comes across, journalism remains a timeless and indispensable part of life. So as Hardy and her career grows and evolves with the times, her portrayal of stories, no matter the format, will endure.

“Watching a lot of reporters my age making breakthroughs has been my inspiration,” said Hardy. “They’re changing the content of reporting. Not the facts, but reporting on it in a different way that’s more timely.”

When it comes student athletes injuries, there is a lot that goes into their recovery behind the scenes that fans don’t get to see. The athletes have to go through physical therapy and have to build strength back up in whatever part of their body got hurt. Lots of athletes can developed what is known as ” Depression”. Depression is a mood disorder that has persistent sadness, lack of energy, and loss of interest in an activity. This can lead to athletes giving up during physical therapy or during the practices to help them come back healthy, which could also result in it taking longer for the athlete to get have on to the field/ court.

“I felt like I let my team down,” said the Georgia Bulldogs running back, who has just finished his junior year at the University of Georgia (UGA) and has won 2 SEC championships. He is from Compton and South Central, California. He started football when he was 5, after his mom signed him up for a youth track club. After starting football, he went and scored three touchdowns in his first game.

After limping off the field at the Red and Black game. The running back suffered an ankle injury that resulted in him not being able to finish the scrimmage on head coach Kirby Smarts orders. “It prevented me from playing the sport I loved,” he said. He was asked how he keep his mental wellbeing high, “You have to keep your head up.” During the Georgia Bulldogs running back’s freshman year, he was on fire. The stats were high and the speed was even faster.

Baylee Beachler, a softball athlete at Robert Morris, agrees that her injury affected her mentally. “My injury affected me physically by making me feel out of place and without a purpose, it messed up my every day routines and took away my ability to do what I love.” In 2025, she was the first women in Pendleton County High School to sign with a Division 1 program. She is from Franklin, West Virginia. She suffers from a torn tendon in her shoulder. ” It affected my mental health by making me feel left out because I could never do anything with my team. It also made me feel worthless because my every day revolved around softball and I didn’t know what to do without it.”

In 2024, she was throwing in a game, when the injury occurred. It ended her 2024 season and she couldn’t throw until December. “It impacted my daily life by messing up my routines of going to the gym every day and working on softball every day, now I just have to sit around and go to therapy once a week. It pulled me away from most of my relationships because I was unable to go out and do things with my friends and family, I am working to get back to hanging out with all of them again now that I’m recovering.” She was a huge gym junkie and when she got injured she couldn’t work out. All she has now is physical therapy.

For injured athletes it’s a long road ahead. “It’s a long process. I get better everyday,” the running back explains. Before his injury, he took on a huge role to bring the Georgia Bulldogs 671 yards and nearly 1,000 rushing yards. The players and coaches would describe him as “a little ball of energy,” and that he has a team-first attitude.

Although the road is long , mindset is everything. Beachler agrees, “It was hard but I just changed my mindset to look at the road ahead and think about all the good things that come out of it and how I’ll be stronger next year.” Her coaches would describe her as a very hard worker and that she never gives up on what she sets her mind to.

Athletes have different ways in dealing with their injuries.”I have not participated in any of that other than physical therapy. I turned to God to help me with my struggles and he has helped me the most,” said Beachler. Both athletes have had very hard recovery journeys and have both explained they have to keep their head up and work hard to be able to recover. “Rehab daily,” said the running back when was asked about how he was dealing with his injury.

Everything changes when you get injured because you have to adapt to the situation and try and stay positive through it all, so you can get through it. “Routine was wake up, lift, go to classes, go to practice, sleep. That was my every day. After my injury it was no lift, some classes, lots of dr appointments, sitting at practice and watching, which was super hard for me to do,’ explained Beachler. Although injuries are very hard on athletes, it enables them to prevail.

Ever since I was a kid, college was never presented as an option. It was presented as the next step. Work hard, get good grades and get accepted into a university that helps build a successful future. That was the message I heard from teachers, parents and society for years. It wasn’t until I started looking at tuition costs, housing fees and student loan statistics that I realized pursuing an education could also mean taking on a financial burden that follows students long after they walk across the graduation stage.

The more I researched colleges, the more overwhelming the process became. What once seemed like an exciting milestone quickly turned into a series of questions about affordability. How much debt is too much debt? Is a degree worth tens of thousands of dollars? How many years will it take to pay off students loans after graduation? These are questions that many students are forced to consider before ever stepping foot on a college campus, and they highlight a growing problem with the cost of higher education in the United States.

College is no longer just about paying for classes. Students are expected to cover tuition, housing and meal plans. None of that even helps cover the cost for supplies which can quickly drive up the total cost of attendance. For many families, these expenses are unrealistic to pay out of pocket. As a result, student loans have become the norm rather than the expectation. Instead of graduating with a sense of financial freedom and opportunity, many students leave college carrying debt that can take years or even decades to repay.

The impact of student debt does not end at graduation. Many graduates enter the workforce already owing thousands of dollars, forcing them to make major life decisions based on their financial situation. Buying a home, starting a family or saving for retirement can become far more difficult when a significant portion of a paycheck goes toward loan payments. Rather than beginning adulthood with a strong financial foundation, many graduates spend years trying to recover from the cost earning their degree.

The impact of student debt extends far beyond graduation. According to Forbes Advisor, Americans collectively owe approximately $1.75 trillion in student loan debt, making it one of the largest forms of consumer debt in the country. Forbes advisor also reports that the average federal student loan borrower owes more than $35,000. These numbers highlight how common it has become for students to take on significant financial burdens in order to earn a degree. Rather than entering the workforce with financial freedom and opportunity, many graduates begin their adult lives focused on repaying loans that can take years or decades to eliminate. As college costs continue to rise, the question becomes not whether students will face debt, but how much debt they will be forced to carry.

Perhaps the most concerning aspect of rising college costs is that they discourage students from pursuing higher education altogether. According to the Nation Center for Education Statistics (NCES), concerns about affordability are among the most common reasons students choose not to attend a four-year institution. Many students are forced to settle for school they did not originally want to attend, while others delay college or avoid it completely because of the financial burden. Education should be an opportunity available to anyone willing to work for it, not a privilege reserved for those who can afford increasingly expensive tuition bills.

Higher education has long been viewed as a pathway to opportunity, personal grown and career success. However, as tuition and other college expenses continue to rise, that opportunity is becoming increasingly difficult for many students to access. While earning a degree remains important, students should not have to sacrifice their financial future in order to receive an education. Colleges, lawmakers and educational institutions must work toward making higher education more affordable so that future generations can focus on learning and building successful careers rather than worrying about years of debt. Education should open doors, not create financial barriers that prevent students from reaching their full potential.

For the first time in almost two decades, Georgia punches their ticket to Omaha. The 3rd seeded Bulldogs beat 14th-ranked Mississippi State in a two game thriller in front of sold out Foley field.

“I tell our guys all the time, I think toughness gets a bad rap. People think it’s some kind of physical element, and it’s not. You have to learn to be capable of great endurance and understand that our game is really long,” said head coach Wes Johnson after two close ball games. “And you just saw a bunch of resilient guys, and you saw the fruition of all that work come through.”

Game one was held on Saturday, ending in a close win for the Georgia Bulldogs. Mississippi State came out swinging, earning them a 7-0 lead. In the fifth inning, Georgia started climbing back to earn a 2-run lead. State and Georgia battle back and forth for the next 4 innings. In the bottom of the 8th, Micheal O’Shaughnessy – filing in for suspended third baseman Tre Phelps- hit a 3-run homer, sending it over the scoreboard. To end the game, closing pitcher Justin Byrd held the Mississippi State Bulldogs scoreless in the ninth inning, helping Georgia take game one of the Athens Super Regional.

Going into game two, Georgia just needed one more victory to punch their ticket to Omaha. The UGA Bulldogs quickly asserted dominance, keeping a steady lead for most of the game. With pitcher Caden Aoki setting the tone, pitching 5.2 innings, striking out 9 batters. State had a furious comeback attempt, which led to the game going into extra innings. Georgia star catcher Daniel Jackson blasted a go-ahead 2-run homer in the tenth. Justin Byrd took the mound yet again to secure the Bulldogs trip to Omaha.

“I remember going to bed that night knowing we were going to Omaha, we are going to win this game, and it just didn’t work out,” said Senior Kolby Branch. “And now we are on to Omaha, it’s kind of a full circle moment.”

Veterans, like Branch, having experienced heartbreaking endings the last two seasons, say the trip to Omaha is proof of their hard work paying off.

Head Coach Wes Johnson got emotional in the post-game interview, talking about the former players who helped the team get to where they are today and how the current team’s resilience is how they fought until the end to score their spot in the College World Series.

National Player of the Year finalist, Daniel Jackson, stated how seemingly little things as the “sour power” can unite their team like it has. The sour power trend started out as a simple celebration after scoring a run and it has turned into a fan wide tradition.

He ends his interview saying, “The chemistry on our team, it’s hard to talk about. I mean, it’s just incredible. I think a big factor of that is, as silly as it sounds to say, winning. When you’re winning together, it’s fun, and it’s true. The locker room is a much happier place after a win.”

“Ships at a distance have every man’s wish on board.” 

Almost every high schooler recognizes this iconic opening line from the novel “Their Eyes Were Watching God,” and many could write a great essay incorporating it. However, few could write a line like it. For how much school systems emphasize the analysis of creative works, they are remarkably apathetic towards actually teaching creative writing. Creative writing is equally as important as traditional writing and requiring creative writing would add considerable value to students’ education.

 While many schools offer creative writing courses, they are elective courses–treated like a fun add-on to education and not a core discipline. This attitude ignores the fact that creative writing is an integral skill for many jobs, including ones where writing is primarily fact-based.

“Every writer, even if you’re a nonfiction writer, you have some elements within you that want to be creative,” says Piedmont Mass Communications Chair Joe Dennis. “I think creative writing has a strong impact in journalistic writing and nonfiction writing… When I was in college I was really close friends with a very excellent creative writer and she ended up taking a journalism class with me. Her influence in that class was so important because she helped people be more visual in their words and painting a better picture for people who were really well trained in writing facts… [she] really did a great job of embellishing the stories to make them come to life.”

The immersion in literature that a creative writing class offers gives students a new perspective on writing. “It’s experiential learning, and that’s something that I feel like a lot of people would benefit from,” says Madeline Willcocks-Hodlick, who took creative writing as a sophomore at The New School of Atlanta. 

Rose Klingsporn, a rising sophomore at Berklee College of Music who took creative writing in her senior year of high school, adds: “you’re doing a lot of reading of creative writing, and therefore you’re doing a lot of interpretation of creative writing. And that really helps in terms of general media literacy… a lot of English class is, like: these are the characters’ motivations. This is the character’s feelings. This is why they’re doing these things in the universe of the story. Creative writing is more [from] a technical perspective: why does this work? What technique are they using to make this poem good?” 

Getting hands-on experiences is valuable for students’ academic growth as well as their confidence in applying their skills outside the classroom. Klingsporn explains, “I go to music school. I’m talking about art all the time, and it helps to have those tools where I’m able to engage with art on a critical and technical level.” 

While not everyone has the opportunity to directly apply creative writing skills to their jobs, they can still apply in everyday life. Klingsporn says, “Going into that class, I was like, I don’t really like poetry… Now I write poems for fun sometimes, which I never used to do.” 

Writing in free time can boost vocabulary, critical thinking and empathy. An English class that encourages students to write outside of class is valuable to students’ personal and professional life, but also to their academic success. While discussing the idea of creative writing as a core class, Willcocks-Hodlick predicted that, in addition to promoting success in English,  “Work for other classes would be higher quality, too, because people would fall into the norm of kind of forging their own path and being creative with every process.”

Creative writing class gives students the chance to see academia from a new perspective. At the prospect of adding Creative Writing as a core English class, Klingsporn lights up: “[It would give] students a different way to engage with writing,” she says, “and hopefully foster some creative spirits in kids, because we need more of that.”