The Oracle caps of the 2016-2017 school year with a note from four-year staff member and graduating Editor-in-Chief Zephyr Strosnider.

    The last four years have somehow managed to be simultaneously the longest and shortest time of my life. It’s hard to remember the time before I was in high school, but the first day of Freshman year somehow feels like yesterday. I still remember the first day I walked into newspaper class. Seth Hochman, my future mentor and Editor-in-Chief, looked at me with the goofiest grin I had ever seen.

     The Oracle has been like a family to me since then. The staff has always been small but dedicated. Even this year, when our membership dwindled to four-and-a-half members (the half was because our features writer transferred mid-year), we still cranked out just as many articles as the previous years. Working as a staff writer and eventually working my way up to Editor-in- Chief has taught me so much about hard work, determination, and most importantly how teamwork truly can make the dream work. It sounds silly, but it’s the truth.

     So many of my articles were enhanced by Seth’s interschool connections, by Jacob Lewis’ knack for alliterative headlines, and by former writer Alexa Rakusin’s

hidden talent for picture captioning. The Oracle may only be a high school newspaper, but it truly does have the feel of something much more. I am so grateful for the opportunities that working for The Oracle has offered for me (and no, I’m not only referencing the free football tickets).

     For anyone thinking about joining the staff in the next couple years, I completely recommend it. Few other classes have given me the leadership skills and interpersonal abilities that I have gained from my four years on the staff.

     Zephyr Strosnider has served as a staff writer for The Oracle from 2013 to 2017, and this year placed 3rd in State in the Georgia Scholastic Press Association’s First Amendment Essay Contest. She is an AP Scholar with Distinction and a member of the National Honor Society. She works at the Delta Community Credit Union through her work-based learning internship. She played varsity softball from 2013-2015. In the fall, she will attend Georgia Institute of Technology and will major in biomedical engineering.