Voices of the Morning Announcements

Every morning at the start of second period, students hear the click of the intercom followed by, “Good morning, School Without Walls!” The student volunteer for the morning announcements then shares upcoming club meetings, sports games, fundraisers, and other important events. Although any student can volunteer to deliver the morning announcements, there are a few students who have taken it upon themselves to become regular announcers.

Nardos Jebril (‘25) signs up to do the announcements five times a month, Felicia Ogundimu (‘26) does them once a week, and Hugo Rosen (‘24) does them twice a week. “I just write my name when there are spaces left” on the sign-up sheet, Ogundimu explained. She really enjoys volunteering for the morning announcements, saying it helps her “start off the morning nicely.” Ogundimu also mentioned that this fuels her public speaking skills and that occasionally missing a few minutes of class is a bonus as well.

For Rosen, who started announcing in the middle of his junior year, the morning announcements became a habit. “At first it just seemed fun, then I realized that a lot of the time the spots aren’t filled, so I thought, why not?” He observed that when there are no volunteers, administration may not share the announcements that day.

Jebril has also noticed this trend, and stressed how easy it is for students to volunteer. “You just go up to the front office and there’s a form with the days and slots for you to sign your name.”

These frequent student volunteers have found many benefits in doing the morning announcements. They especially believe it is a good way to connect with the community. Ogundimu emphasized that, “People are just going to know you more, you’ll make more friends.” Students who routinely do the morning announcements do tend to be known for it, since they share their name and add some personal flair to the script.

Jebril would like to see more creative expression and student input. “I wish administration would allow more jokes or something funny because that way we could actually get the school engaged in the announcements.”

Jebril believes that giving announcers more creative freedom would help correct the low level of student interest in the announcements. Many students ignore the commentary, a problem that the student announcers would like to fix. Rosen said that, in ignoring the announcements, students may miss an important club or extracurricular opportunity. Jebril agrees that they are valuable for staying informed on upcoming student events, such as, “sports, bake sales, club events, or other really important announcements.”

The morning announcements are a daily part of Walls life and a valuable resource to keep students informed. These student morning announcement volunteers play an important role in keeping the announcements fun and familiar.

To conclude in the words of Rosen, “These have been your morning announcements!”