Junior Emilia Alves, renowned school journalist and my friend, has many stories to tell through journalism. I still remember the days Alves and I spent playing together for hours at the Ludlow Boys and Girls Club. We would do everything together, but one specific game we really loved was house, creating our own home and family and getting lost in our imagination. Going back to that time brings nostalgia to both of us, since we have gone so far since then. Alves has grown to be such a big inspiration to me, with her ambitious attitudes towards journalism, her role being the editor of The Cub, and her drive for academics are some attributes that everyone can learn from.  

Alves’ love for storytelling started at a very young age, when she began to appreciate the artistry of cinematography and screenwriting, specifically that of the Star Wars series. She watched the popular Star Wars series religiously and later found passion for writing herself into the movies, making herself Princess Leia’s daughter and inserting herself in the movie. 

“I truly found my love for journalism through screenwriting, but another big influence was art,” Alves recounts.

Alves has a deep-seated love for art, spending most of her day with a pencil in hand, sketching away her next piece. She has been drawing since childhood, making doodles of anything she could imagine. She even tried to teach me how to draw once, however, I was not blessed with the same talent she was. 

“Because I wasn’t good at sports as a kid, I would turn to art instead,” she said. 

Creating art gave her another creative outlet and even helped with the development of her stories. Having pictures helped her storylines come together to make the story complete. 

Since then, Alves has grown as both a journalist and an artist. She’s written countless hit articles for our school newspaper, “The Cub,” in conjunction with writing for “The Ludlow Register” on the side. One of her favorites, and a popular article among the student body, was “Single and Fabulous,” where she dives into the depths of high school relationships and her opinions on toxic relationships. 

She says, “I love that one [Single and Fabulous] because I put a lot of work into it and it sparked a lot of controversy around the school.” 

Alves’s love for journalism has prevailed, continuing to be motivated to share her opinions. She really likes the networking of opinions that comes with writing. Being able to share her opinions while also hearing other perspectives helps her to grow and change as an individual, allowing her to always put her best foot forward. She also loves being able to know exactly what’s going on, hearing it from firsthand sources, and composing her next article. And, of course, she really enjoys the writing aspect of journalism as well, allowing her creativity to flow in her articles. 

She has expanded her love for journalism by making an impact on The Cub. Alves has been a writer for this newspaper since her sophomore year, writing many articles and continuing to share her opinions across the school. As of this year, she was able to fight off Liam Richter for her spot as the editor-in-chief to expand her impact further. 

Allison Lewis, a junior here at Ludlow High School, states, “Emilia has made a huge impact on The Cub, everything is so organized and everyone loves writing because of her. I had just joined The Cub this year and she made me feel so welcomed.” 

This past summer, Alves had the opportunity to experience a journalism camp in Boston. Here, she spent a week at Simmons College learning the ins and outs of professional journalism. She also had the opportunity to meet high-achieving journalists and make new friends while visiting publications like the Boston Globe. 

“It was so cool to meet people who had the same interests as me…and there were really good cupcakes,” Alves said.

Alves also runs a blog in her free time, putting more articles out on her personal platform. Her blog, “Emilia’s Editorial,” is where she shares her unwavering opinions, not having to worry about school rules and policies. Here, she has the chance to let loose and write what she wants when she wants. 

Art is another one of her common hobbies. In fact, she recently completed Advanced Placement drawing, ending the class with an A and hopes for a 5 on the exam. In my opinion, her works are exceptional, always offering a new insight on different perspectives. 

In the classroom, Alves keeps up with a rigorous schedule, showing her drive and effort. As a junior, she is taking 5 AP courses while still balancing a social and extracurricular life aside from that. With exams just concluding last week, she has been spending more time on her articles. 

Junior Sophia Alvaro comments, “Working with her in art is so inspiring because of her thoughtful insights on different works. She is so good at creating symbolism and painting it into her picture.”

Outside of art and journalism, Alves is always the person to go to when anyone needs to talk. Whether it be joking around or needing serious advice, Alves has such a bright soul and can light up any room. 

Along with that, she is extremely supportive of the people she loves. Whether it be coming to a tennis game or sitting in the audience of a pageant, she always makes sure to show up for her friends and family. 

In the future, Alves plans to attend college with a major in journalism and a minor in art. She has a few colleges in mind, but ultimately dreams of going to a prestigious school for her undergrad degree. Her two dream schools are Yale University and Lehigh University, with the more realistic hope of attending the University of Massachusetts Amherst. 

Following her college education, she plans to pursue journalism at a professional publication. Alves’ options are open and she is continuing to research each publication to find her perfect match, making sure they have the right internship opportunities for her. Her top publications as of now are The Boston Globe, Rolling Stone, The New York Times, and The Washington Post.

Until then, Alves continued her work with The Cub while striving for good grades and many college acceptances. Be on the lookout for more articles!