By Claire Chang, Andrew Duval, Eleanor Gil, Caitlynn Sue and Anna Yue Nov. 12, 2025

In a corner of J-5 sits a nondescript brown cabinet—unassuming until one of its drawers is rolled open to reveal rows upon rows of newspaper archives, the cherished labor of decades of journalism students. The

nostalgic yellow sheets and crinkled edges tell a story of students and school gone-by: “Queen and Princess Nominated for Prom,” 1971—describing the school’s difficulty in selling their $3.50 prom tickets; “Sober Graduation,” 1995—a full 11 by 17 inch page designated to warn students of the dangers of drunk driving; “Tragedy strikes nation,” 2001— the school’s reaction to the Sept. 11 attacks; “Television networks launch 3D TV channels to accompany 3D TVs,” 2013—a report on attempts to make 3D TVs mainstream, which did not age too well.

The Charger Account, the school’s very own student-run newspaper, has existed ever since the school’s founding in 1967. Yet, flipping through the thousands of pages in those brown drawers, one will see a paper that is constantly evolving alongside the community.

The earliest Charger Account publications were much more frequent, with over 10 one-page publications a year. A typical publication consisted of around 15-20 short articles covering school events and activities, as well as the occasional local show or sale. Ads covering the bottom of pages provide a window into trends of the time, including “Jeff’s Jeans”—jeans for “the man who likes his stripes with style,” and “FREE root beer float with the purchase of any hamburger”—a promotion for an A&W chain restaurant.

Moving on to the 80s and 90s, The Charger Account saw longer publications with more photos and dedicated sections for Editorials, Sports, Features and News. Special sections and columnists further established the paper’s unique charm. In particular, “Roses and Raspberries” was a column dedicated to “roses”—things the staff liked—and “raspberries” things the staff disliked; “Rubber chickens,” “integrals” and “fat kisses” were commended by the staff, while “rubber cement that smells bad” and “the six hours it takes for a girl to get ready for a dance” left a sour taste in everyones’ mouths.

Previous journalism students used more primitive technology; thus, designing pages took a bit of handmade precision. Students were able to format individual articles using Adobe Pagemaker on iMacs. However, structuring those articles along with photos as one cohesive page was a more physical process. Instead, parts of pages were printed and cut out, then carefully placed onto a page using rulers for alignment and rubber cement for adhesion. If an issue was spotted, students would mark it with a blue highlighter and correct the error by printing a new version of the section and pasting it on top.

In the 2000s, The Charger Account began using Adobe InDesign to digitally format pages. This allowed page editors more freedom to creatively express themselvest hrough nontraditional page designs. Harmonious designs visually unite the content of multiple articles and cleverly placed infographics blend reporting with art.

About the Contributors

Claire Chang

editor-in-chief

Claire Chang is a senior at Leland High School and the Front Page, Lifestyle and Sports Editor-in-Chief for The Charger Account. When not attempting DIY projects from YouTube, she can be found working out, speaking in Spanish, hiking with friends or vibing to BTS.

Andrew Duval

editor-in-chief

Andrew Duval is a Senior at Leland High School, and is the Editor-in-Chief for the Entinertainment, Last Word, and Science/Tech pages for The Charger Account. He enjoys exploring the world around him, whether it be through hiking, hitching rides on public transit, or finding concerts to go to.

Eleanor Gil

editor-in-chief

Eleanor Gil is a senior at Leland and the Editor-in-Chief of Feature US, Feature World, and Feature School for The Charger Account. Outside of journalism, she enjoys doing yoga, learning different languages, playing the viola, dabbling in philosophy, and embarking on a billion other side quests.

Caitlynn Sue

editor-in-chief

Caitlynn Sue is a senior at Leland High School and the Opinions and Viewpoint Editor-in-Chief for The Charger Account. Aside from journalism, she loves solving math problems, dancing at 2 am, and playing with her cat.

Anna Yue

editor-in-chief

Anna Yue, as the Editor-in-Chief of Community News, School News and Investigative Report, enjoys napping, snacking, binge watching and doing anything that allows her to comfortably zone out from the world. If she is not picking up your calls and responding to your texts, she is either doing one of the above or watching her hamster run on its wheel!