Alexa Ingersoll ’19 has always had an interest in media and communications. So with a passion for communications in her heart, she applied and was accepted to the New York Times Academy for high school students – a two week summer program taught by New York Times reporters.
<img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-13197 lazyload" src="https://www.bishopodowd.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/alexa-NYT-photo.jpg" alt="alexa-NYT-photo" width="700" height="527" srcset="https://www.bishopodowd.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/alexa-NYT-photo.jpg 700w, https://www.bishopodowd.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/alexa-NYT-photo-300x226.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px" />
Alexa took a critical thinking class called “City as Muse and Subject,” in which she and other high school students from across the country examined cultural and social phenomena in New York from a critical lens. Their class discussions focused on many topics, such as gentrification and public health, socioeconomic inequality, religious diversity, urban trends and city planning.
For her final project, Alexa and her group identified a diverse group of New Yorkers whose stories reflected the broad scope of personal histories and backgrounds of the city. Next, they created an Instagram, and through short stories and photos profiled these individuals demonstrating how and why millions of people from across the globe are drawn to New York.
Being accepted in the program was a tremendous honor for Alexa, and she feels that the instruction she’s received at O’Dowd helped her to shine amongst the other students.