When the principal emails you about a story you wrote in the student newspaper, it’s usually a sign of trouble. In Denisse Merino’s case, the email she received led to something very different.

Denisse is a senior at Leadership and Public Service High School and writes for the school’s news site, Lead News. Her school is part of a small but growing cohort trying to reverse the trends in unequal school journalism access for students at predominantly Black and Hispanic high schools. Backed by training and support from the nonprofit organization Press Pass NYC, Denisse has taken on a leading role in the newspaper club.

Denisse also happens to be one of our Miseducation student reporters this school year. In this episode, she shares about her thoughts on the value of student journalism and about the story she wrote that convinced her principal to act.