Nine Bothell High newspaper students recently joined 800 other high-school students from around Washington for Journalism Day (J-Day) on the University of Washington campus.

Sponsored by Washington Journalism Education Association, J-Day was a daylong event comprised of 26 journalism-related sessions ranging from “Student Press Law” to “Investigative Journalism” to “The Craft of Editing” all taught by local professionals and professors in the business. Students were encouraged to attend two sessions throughout the day based on their interests and editorial positions.

The day concluded with a presentation and questions-and-answer session by keynote speaker “The News Chick” Linda Thomas. A journalist for 25 years and the morning news host on 97.3 KIRO FM, Thomas was a great example of success in the business.

Thomas spoke of the importance of journalists in modern society, commenting that, “There has never been a better time to be a journalist,” referring to the increase of media mediums in the last decade.

When asked for advice in the field, Thomas responded with, “It all comes down to writing,” stressing the importance of good writing skills in any journalism field, “focus on the content.”

Thomas also spoke of her experiences of the still present sexism in the journalism field, encouraging women to “support each other.” “We have a responsibility to be the voice,” concluded Thomas, ending the presentation on an encouraging note inspiring young journalists.

Journalism Day 2011 was an overall hit with local Bothell High students. New co-feature editor of Bothell High newspaper, The Catamount, Chelsea Wing commented, “This experience has made me excited to get to work on the school paper.” Ayush Singh, Bothell High co-business manager of The Catamount called J-Day “very informative,” ready to implement news ideas learned from J-Day.

Alexandra Graff is a Bothell High senior.