The HS Beat: Newsroom strategies to boost staff morale
Build staff bonds with food, celebrations and fun — here’s how
Like many teenagers with an out-of-wack circadian rhythm, I too, as editor-in-chief, struggle to focus in our 8 a.m. class. And when energy dips, so does morale.
The following strategies help our staff push through, build camaraderie and enjoy the news cycle to its fullest, even during the drowsiest times of day.
The Jets Flyover has “Snack Fridays” every two weeks. A staff member, adviser included, purchases some tasty treats for the entire team. For the first 15 minutes of class, we chill and munch on snacks to celebrate another successful news cycle.
Similarly, the Na Pueo, the student newspaper of the Mid-Pacific Institute in Hawaii, takes it up a notch with potluck parties quarterly after each print deadline.
Along with food, we recognize journalism-related achievements. For example, when a writer wins Best of SNO, we celebrate the writer and any other contributors all together at the beginning of class. At the end of each semester, we highlight these achievements at school-wide assemblies.
The Pinion, McKinley High School’s student news site in Hawaii, takes it to a more personal level and celebrates staff birthdays. They also keep a sticker tracker for achievements.
Content-wise, a publication needs more than just campus news stories and in-depth features or editorials — it needs fun pieces. Each winter, the Jets Flyover puts together “Staff Picks” — a top 5-10 list of anything from pet photos to movies.
Throughout the semester, we run quirky staff polls with questions like, “What’s the most stupid mistake you’ve made when writing or illustrating?”
On our social media page, we post behind-the-scenes picks and staff trivia, fostering both staff bonding and audience engagement.
The Southwest Shadow, the student news site of Southwest Career and Technical Academy in Nevada, posted Halloween staff pics on their social media page. These short breaks between writing sessions offer writers a chance to refresh and bond with each other.
Lastly, the Jets Flyover created staff t-shirts for its journalism, yearbook and video production team. Members wear them at press events or on Fridays, where students can wear spirit shirts.
The shirts also serve as marketing for our program, with the Instagram handle printed across the back.
Publications, especially entry-level ones that operate more like a club rather than a formal class, must motivate their staff and infuse joy into the newsroom beyond seeing a byline.
If your publication utilizes any other strategies, please drop them in the High School Press Central Discord server. Special thanks to staff from the Na Pueo and the Pinion for sharing their stories on the HSPC server.
📧 Contact Leanne Yoon at hspresscentral@gmail.com. For more information, please refer to hspresscentral.com.
Resources:
Helping your staff: Some management principles (IJNet)
I am an editor for a student newspaper and morale is awful (Reddit)
Surviving in your student newsroom (Anya Kelley/LinkedIn)
For nonprofit newsrooms, mission is key to employee morale (Poynter)
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