The launch of our class’ website promised so much. Our writing would transcend the confines of a digital folder, no longer gathering dust after being evaluated. The launch symbolized our departure from a typical English class and venture into publication: a bright stage where our compositions will be unveiled to new audiences, continuing to be consumed for years to come. Finally, we had a space for us, young writers, to express our opinions, address our community, and establish a dedicated readership eager to hear our voices.

“We are here today for a very special occasion. As we gather in this room, we are about to launch a creation that represents the collective effort of our class.” 

Faced with an audience of friends, parents, and educators, my co-host Chan and I reminisced about the months of “passion, hard work, and dedication” that went into this launch, from writing critical responses to Rebecca Solnit’s The Best American Essays 2019 to bonding as a class during our Telunas Retreat. Our class’s tireless efforts were about to be published on our new website, itsthespark.com.

A milestone in our journey was the intense debate we held a month prior—to decide the name of our publication. There, three of our most outstanding speakers—Teddy, Jayesha, and Matti—presented riveting arguments for why their suggested name should headline our website. Although The Situation and The Quandary were great options, Matti grounded his argument in the mission of our class, to spark new ideas, conversations, and perspectives in our audience—of course, The Spark came out on top. 

The website launch wasn’t all informative. We continued our class tradition of one-minute debates, creating a bracket from a pool of volunteers where two debaters would go head-to-head, duking it out in favor of their random word. The matchups were exciting, especially when students and teachers went head-to-head, giving students the chance to compete with their teachers and teachers the chance to humble their students. After six rounds, two AT Nonfiction and Rhetoric Course (ATNFR) students, Jay and Aashna, emerged as finalists. Jay, using the word “sun” passionately argued about its ephemeral nature, and its ever intruding yet guiding presence that transcends time and space. Aashna, with the word “clothes” artfully spoke on their capacity for individuality, for expression, pointing out the creative fashion choices in the audience. After two minutes, in a hotly contested decision by our three-person judging panel, Jay emerged victorious.

To conclude our launch, Noah, the head designer of our class, provided a thorough walkthrough of the website, guiding the parents and educators through the site itself. is explanation is still available for any readers, click this link to view it.

Coming into SAS during my junior year, I had never heard of a course remotely close to ATNFR. What makes this course stand out from the rest is the emphasis on collaborative learning. Before applying for the course, Ms. Catherine Pate spoke to me about her ideal vision for this class: a class where everyone learns from each other and works together like a publishing house. Leading up to the launch, our three committees—copywriting, design, and marketing—worked harmoniously, constantly assisting each other, ensuring that our final product was an uncompromised reflection of our collective vision, a “culmination of our A+s, B+s, C+s.” — available at itsthespark.com.

This course can be traced back to former SAS student Declan Sheehan and Ms. Kelly Nash (read more here).