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Justine Seligson

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator

Being a self-described political junkie and a teen travel writer, Justine Seligson ’15 is not only, without a doubt,  a well rounded student and basically a mother’s dream, but also a very unique addition to the staff.

Seligson is extremely modest about her accomplishments, but it is very clear that her extensive journalistic experience outside of Inklings has largely influenced her presence on the paper. “I have a column on teen travel on my parent’s website, which is called Farewell Travels,” Seligson said. “It’s a very different type of writing [than Inklings] but it’s definitely helped me to grow as a journalist overall.” Seligson goes on to describe the plethora of exquisite articles she has written for her column over the years.

Seligson further explained how her experiences in traveling have shaped her journalistic presence in a large way. She explains why she is nonchalant about the amazing experiences she has had traveling the globe, explaining that it has always been a way of life for her and her family. “My family travels all the time,” she said. “It’s just part of our business.”

However, Seligson says that “…[she] would a much different writer if [she] hadn’t traveled so much.” She casually mentions how much of an impact a pre-college Kenyan writing program had on her, as what an honor it was to be featured in the National Geographic Student Edition. “It made me realize that even though journalism may supposedly be a dying business, there may be some hope for me to pursue my dream career,” she said.

With her in-depth knowledge of travel and politics, Seligson is sure to be an interesting voice on the paper this year. She hopes to improve her writing and photography even more this year, as well as to help other staff members to increase the quality of their own photographs.

All content by Justine Seligson

You don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it’s gone

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator June 20, 2015

As I write this article, I am in the midst of my senior internship. It’s been awhile since I was rushing from class to class and actually taking notes. I find myself with very mixed feelings. I’m almost...

SBAC test administered to Class of 2016 in place of CAPT

SBAC test administered to Class of 2016 in place of CAPT

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator April 7, 2015

Gone are the days when teachers assembled their classroom chairs into neat, distant rows so that sophomores could bubble in sheets while hoping for two things: that they would finish before time was called...

Community fundraises for preschool with interactive event for families

Community fundraises for preschool with interactive event for families

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator April 2, 2015

The temperatures were low, the sky was gray and snow was pelting in people’s faces from a horizontal angle. However, these conditions did not detract many community members from participating in the...

Best Buddies dedicates month to ending a word

Best Buddies dedicates month to ending a word

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator March 7, 2015

To many students, March can be described by a simple word: long. As one of the few times during the year that is uninterrupted by any significant break, April seems like centuries away. However, for...

College Greek systems ruin lives

College Greek systems ruin lives

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator March 2, 2015

She sits in the desolate, cobwebbed basement of the house. She suffers her way through putting together a 1,000-piece puzzle. Her only source of light is a tiny candle. It is around three in the morning,...

Karyn Morgan is crowned assistant principal of the year

Karyn Morgan is crowned assistant principal of the year

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator February 19, 2015

The Connecticut Association of Schools (CAS) announced that Karyn Morgan, Staples’ assistant principal to the junior class, has won the title of 2015 High School Assistant Principal of the Year. According...

Humans of Staples – Rachel Beck embraces life’s constant uncertainties

Humans of Staples – Rachel Beck embraces life’s constant uncertainties

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator February 16, 2015

Some seniors know exactly what they want to do once they graduate this June. But ask Rachel Beck ’15 what her future entails, and she will have no specific goals. Her life path is constantly changing. “I...

Orchestra, chorus and band students amp up for Candlelight

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator December 5, 2014

Fans pack the seats. A strong and jolly melody beats in the room. Lights dim, blacken, and then brighten again. Is this the Super Bowl at halftime? Nope. It’s the Staples Candlelight Concert, which...

Photo contributed by Renee Reiner '15

Child study system creates a personal bridge between preschool and high school

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator November 12, 2014

In the midst of a physics lab, statistics test and Euro essay, some Staples students choose to get down to crawling level and spend time with preschoolers as teenage teachers. “We’re not just playing...

Seniors scramble to make early deadlines

Seniors scramble to make early deadlines

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator October 11, 2014

It was the start of August. The sun was shining brightly in the sky. Many people were still at camp or on vacation. The idea of summer homework was in a whole other dimension. However, Lexy Iannacone...

Allow Arabic for all

Allow Arabic for all

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator October 6, 2014

French. German. Latin. Mandarin. Spanish. All the languages offered here contain value. But there is a giant gap in need of filling. It’s the Arabic gap. I came to Staples thinking that foreign...

Tutti’s employees hand out a wide array of samples to a long line of eager customers.

Slice of Saugatuck offers a unique type of retail experience

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator September 15, 2014

Westporters eager to get a combined taste of all the delicacies from different Saugatuck restaurants had the opportunity to on Sunday, Sept. 14, and for free. Organized by the Westport-Weston Chamber of...

Czech foreign exchange student joins Staples community

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator September 9, 2014

When Martin Dolezal boarded his plane in the Czech Republic heading for a year-long stay in the United States, he had no sincere expectations for what would be on the other side. Basing his previous knowledge...

Seniors hit high notes

Seniors hit high notes

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator June 20, 2014

It’s a Saturday morning. Dan Shapiro ’14 is on the train heading into the city to attend his weekly Juilliard Pre-College Program. The following day, he heads to Norwalk to take part in practice...

Westport warms to  possibility of solar panels

Westport warms to possibility of solar panels

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator May 30, 2014

Imagine a form of energy that is completely clean, renewable and inexpensive in the long run. It has none of the filth of fossil fuels. Using it on a large-scale basis would allow many people to enjoy...

Down with the death penalty

Down with the death penalty

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator May 26, 2014

Listen to any US politician’s speech and chances are, at some point, he or she will sprinkle in a form of the below phrase. “America’s great because we’re free.” Okay. For the most part,...

Java brings a new taste to Westport

Java brings a new taste to Westport

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator April 25, 2014

Situated at 44 Church St. lies a simple, typical 06880 building. The inside, though, is anything but typical. With long windows and bright yellow and red walls sporting images ranging from kids’ scribbles...

New anonymous app skyrockets in popularity among students

Kacey Hertan and Justine Seligson April 24, 2014

An epidemic is defined as a widespread and quickly spreading factor. Staples has a new epidemic. It’s not the usual cases of the flu or senioritis. It’s Yik Yak, an app where people can write anonymous...

Write more, guess less

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator March 31, 2014

Students (and maybe even some teachers) groaned when as they saw this headline. Students hate papers because all the analysis, writing and editing that goes into a receiving an A is difficult. Teachers...

Snow days break up spring break

Snow days break up spring break

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator March 5, 2014

Westport Public Schools have had six school cancellations this year, which is one day over the allotted five. As a result, April Break could potentially be reduced by a weekend and that first Monday, making...

One of Staples’ combined varsity, jv and freshman teams gather before a match. Next to them is a board with the arrangement of teams playing throughout the fieldhouse.

Staples hosts multi-state indoor hockey tournament

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator March 5, 2014

Sporting some colors nonexistent in the FCIAC while hitting balls at lighting speed, Westport Field Hockey held quite a unique tournament on Saturday, March 1. As a means of raising money for the local...

Multiple factors fuel college selection process

Multiple factors fuel college selection process

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator February 28, 2014

In an era where freshmen sport sweatshirts of their future hopeful universities, and online tours of practically every college are available, the academics of a college seem to sometimes be weighed down...

Don't cut into April break

Don’t cut into April break

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator February 14, 2014

There is such thing as too much of a good thing. This can range from chocolate (well, not really) to snow days. When I learned this morning that Westport Public Schools would have yet another snow day,...

Superintendent Elliot Landon, far right, sits with the Board of Education during Monday night's meeting which determined the school budget.

[Photo] Board of Education approves cuts to 2014-2015 school budget

Eliza Llewellyn, Web Managing Editor February 11, 2014

Superintendent Elliot Landon, far right, sits with the Board of Education during Monday night's meeting which determined the school budget.

Sirlin feels that the Seahawks, an underrated team of underdogs, have a promising future.

[Photo] Richard Sherman and his band of (promising) misfits

Grant Sirlin, Staff Writer February 8, 2014

Sirlin feels that the Seahawks, an underrated team of underdogs, have a promising future.

Forensics students must come to school on make-up day

Forensics students must come to school on make-up day

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator January 20, 2014

Students are greatly anticipating the break before and during Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2014. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday of the week before are reserved for multiple, exhausting exams. With make-up...

Westport schools establish new snow day policy

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator December 20, 2013

Times have changed. If a natural disaster – snow or hurricane or terrible winds –  hits Westport, the Board of Education (BOE) will no longer have to scramble to reach 180 days of instruction per...

International Travel Should Be Mandatory

International Travel Should Be Mandatory

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator December 17, 2013

 Stephen Hawking once said, “We are just an advanced breed of monkeys on a minor planet of a very average star.” The same idea applies to America, which is just another nation among 196 sovereign...

Although some see Wednesdays in a positive light, for others the day is still a letdown compared to Friday.

Getting over the hump of the week

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator November 20, 2013

Wednesday: the third weekday that derives from the Middle English word Wednesdei. This day, being observed as a fast day for the Eastern Orthodox Church and associated with the color green in Thailand,...

Samantha, 6, and Arielle, 5, simultaneously pencil out design for their respective printmaking projects.

Westport Arts Center hosts weekend mixed media lab for kids

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator November 12, 2013

It’s 9:34 on a Saturday morning. In a well-lit room at Westport Art Center (WAC)’s waterside facility, smiling elementary school children gather around tables hard at work on printmaking crafts. This...

Students Fight in the Real Hunger Games

Students Fight in the Real Hunger Games

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator November 4, 2013

I never chose to join the wrestling team. I was forced onto it. My place of competition is not the traditional ring, but the cafeteria. That makes my wrestling only more painful. After 43 minutes of...

Rachel doran’15 works on sewing a pair of her Rachel’s Rags pajama pants, sold in Sweet Rexie’s and Dress code, and online on Etsy

Student designer stitches in time

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator November 4, 2013

Pajama day may only come once a year for most Staples students. But for Rachel Doran '15, it is a constant celebration; she gets paid for it, too. At 16-years-old, Doran makes her living by running...

Wasting the Tube

Wasting the Tube

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator October 30, 2013

The brilliant CBS correspondent Morley Safer once said, “reality TV is sleazy, it is manipulative. It is as momentary as anything in popular culture.” I agree. To me, reality shows are total junk....

New Standards: Instead of an average, students are now given a numerical grade on the standard.

Standards-Based Grading Piloted in Math and Science Classes

Ben Goldschlager and Justine Seligson October 4, 2013

Usually, average is the key word with grading. Quarterly homework is averaged. Semester exams are averaged. Final grades are averaged. A student’s mean among all studied units is the ultimate score. However,...

Shall We Dance…In Six Months?

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator September 11, 2013

Aren’t dances supposed to be fun, carefree events that we can all look forward to? Apparently not in 06880. Westport’s reputation of ultra-competitiveness seems to have reared its ugly head in this...

The main room where the Congressman and Senator were speaking was so crowded that many constituents listened in from the side doors.

[Photo] Himes and Blumenthal Discuss Syria at Public Meeting

Eliza Llewellyn, Web Managing Editor September 9, 2013

The main room where the Congressman and Senator were speaking was so crowded that many constituents listened in from the side doors.

Club members pose with an actor at a Shakespeare in the Parks event this past June.

Much Ado About Shakespeare

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator September 5, 2013

For many students in the context of their English class, saying “Shakespeare” is equivalent to saying “torture.” Brian Tippy, who teaches Shakespeare, understands why the historic writer frequently...

Conrad (Jack Siegenthaller) is embraced by his fan club members.

“Bye Bye Birdie” Flies High

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator August 27, 2013

For Staples Players, there wasn’t much time to relax once school ended in June, as rehearsals started soon after for the summer production of “Bye Bye Birdie,” a 1960s musical. With the premiere...

Moving Up in Rank

Moving Up in Rank

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator May 21, 2013

One day I’m dashing through the halls while dragging a humongous backpack.  The next, I’m sauntering from the Wakeman parking lot dangling my own set of car keys. I may be only a sophomore now....

Laugh Tracks: Nothing to Laugh About

Laugh Tracks: Nothing to Laugh About

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator December 19, 2012

Mrs. Wolowitz: Howard! Can you hear me?! Howard: I can hear you without the phone! Hahahahaha This is a scene from the first episode of this season of The Big Bang Theory, along with the reaction from...

Not Free For All

Justine Seligson, Photo Coordinator January 16, 2012

It’s just fourth period and I am already looking at hours of homework after school. That’s once I get home after a mandatory club meeting, a dentist appointment and swim practice. It couldn’t possibly...

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