After spending four years writing for the Spotlight, with three of those years as Opinion editor and one as Features editor, senior Morgan Downing will graduate in May. Morgan originally joined journalism during her freshman year in hopes of finding a community of students who share an equal interest in writing. Since then, she firmly believes she found that community, and so much more.
“I’ve made some great friends through journalism that I’m very grateful for,” Downing said. “It’s the class I look forward to the most because we have so much creative freedom and the other editors make it such a fun and supportive environment.”
During her four years in the club, Morgan has written all sorts of articles—from sports season recaps to album reviews to Homecoming court coverage. However, Opinion and Editorial writing will always hold her heart.
As the Opinion editor for three years, Morgan went on to compete at a state level in Editorial writing at the PSPA State Competition this past March. After an hour-long press conference with Penn State Blue Band members and a timed writing competition, Morgan lived up to her title, placing first in the state for editorial writing.
“Competing in PSPA is always an awesome experience because it allows us to connect with other student journalists from across the Commonwealth,” Downing said. “I was honored to be named state champion at the competition, and it felt great being able to represent the Spotlight.”
In addition to the newspaper, Morgan is also an active member of many other Southern Lehigh clubs. As the vice president of the French Honor Society, co-president of No Place for Hate, and a member of the National Honor Society and Ecology Club, Morgan plays a large role in our school’s success. Morgan also volunteers for the Lehigh Valley Youth Council and is a student ambassador for CareerLink.
In her free time, Morgan enjoys traveling. Through Southern Lehigh’s annual international trips with EF Tours, she visited Italy this past summer and will travel to France this coming summer. Additionally, Morgan enjoys reading, listening to music, photography, and hiking. In fact, she set a life goal to hike all 63 national parks—so far, she’s at 11.
To get to where she is today, Morgan attributes much of her success to the support of her family, including her three role models: her dad for his work ethic, her mom for her creativity, and her grandfather for his kindness. Morgan also recognizes her French teacher, Madame Farley, and several English teachers, for leaving a lasting impact on her education and experience at Southern Lehigh.
“Madame Farley is one of the most supportive teachers I’ve ever had, and I will never forget her kindness,” Downing said. “Also, Mrs. Spritzer and many of my English teachers over the past few years have been crucial to my growth as a writer.”
Although leaving this chapter of her life behind is bittersweet, Morgan is thankful for all she experienced through high school—especially in journalism.
Of the four years she spent as part of the Spotlight staff, Morgan feels her favorite moments to look back on are the times spent with the other editors, whether that be collaborating in the publication lab, attending group field trips, or delivering copies of the newspaper to classrooms on distribution days.
Moving forward, she is excited to continue her education at Lehigh University, where she plans to continue her journalism involvement as a writer for “The Brown and White.” She hopes to one day obtain a career in communications, business, politics, or law.
As she wraps up her final days at Southern Lehigh, Morgan would like to leave a few words of advice for incoming students and underclassmen.
“It’s ok not to have your future all figured out yet,” Downing said. “Take time to explore your interests and discover what you’re passionate about. From there, things will start to fall into place.”
