Student-led news is hitting the (digital) halls of Homewood High School officially for the first time in more than two decades. 

The Homewood Tricorne, staffed by a mix of sophomores, juniors, and seniors, published its inaugural stories on Sept. 2, with topics ranging from sports previews, back-to-school news, teacher features and student spotlights.  

While the website appeared suddenly, announced to students the day it went live, its founding has been long in the works. Boys varsity soccer coach and Spanish teacher Julian Kersh had the idea for a student publication for a few years now.

The idea gained traction last year when Kersh taught his Intro to Journalism elective for the first time to roll that momentum into a campus new publication if there was student interest. 

“[The publication] made perfect sense,” Kersh said. “Frankly, a school of this size needs a journalism program.” 

Among those students in last year’s class was Mackenzie Yoakum, a 2022 graduate, and a freshman at Seton Hall, where she plays volleyball and majors in journalism. 

“[The class] definitely prepared me for college,” Yoakum said. She also says that a smaller class was very helpful, as she could ask a lot of questions and get more direct help from the teacher. 

Kersh believes it is important to keep all students up to date on the events in the school and community. He has also praised HHS for offering many unique electives to its students and said the Tricorne fits in perfectly in Homewood’s course selection. 

Yoakum also sees a need for high school journalism at Homewood. 

“It is a great way to get involved, and to get to know your surrounding school,” she said

The student staff works each day and is dedicated to bringing HHS reliable and intriguing news. The Tricorne, named after the patriot’s three-pointed hat, is the first digital publication at HHS but is not the first student-run news source at Homewood.

In the 70s The Patriot Press brought news to the halls of HHS, and in the late 90s, The Homewood Patriot circulated to the school. Most recently The Lantern provided the high school with news in 2017 as an unofficial extracurricular effort.

The publication goal of The Tricorne and its staff is to bring trustworthy and engaging journalism to its readers, whether the readers be students, teachers, parents, or others in the community.

Kersh, in his 10th year at HHS, majored in journalism and Spanish at Auburn and worked on the campus newspaper The Auburn Plainsman. He also worked at The Tuskegee News and for Goal.com covering global football.  

“I’ve missed being around reporting, writing, and editing,” Kersh said. “Now more than ever the country, the world, needs good journalism, and it’s exciting to allow our students to learn the craft.”