Twenty-five high school students from 15 states logged into the Student Press Law Center’s New Voices Student Leaders Institute this summer expecting to learn about press freedom, but they say they took away so much more. After two weeks of training and collaborating with their peers, they’re now equipped with the leadership skills, advocacy strategies and confidence to lead campaigns for press freedom in their states and communities.
Myesha Phukan, a 2023 institute alumna and now an SPLC advocacy intern, helped co-facilitate the 2026 institute. She shares her experiences working with students who are following in her advocacy footsteps.
Emma Alves is a junior at John Burroughs High School in California. She shares her experiences at the 2026 Institute and what comes next for her advocacy.
Sriram Chiripurapu is a junior at Rock Ridge High School in Virginia where he serves as the Features Editor of The Blaze for the 2026-2027 school year. He shares his experience at the 2026 Institute and what comes next for his advocacy.
Bowen Darling is a junior at Little Rock Central High School, where she is the social media editor on The Tiger newsmagazine staff. She shares her experiences at the 2026 Institute and what comes next in her advocacy work.
Mira Thakkar is a senior at Lambert High School in Georgia, where she serves as Editor-in-Chief of The Lambert Post for the 2026-2027 school year. She shares her experiences at the 2026 Institute and what comes next in her advocacy work.
HB 2918, a New Voices bill aimed at curbing arbitrary censorship of the state’s student journalists, was amended in March to include language that likely would lead to the opposite result. The amended bill awaits a full vote on the House floor, but advocates now hope it never receives one.
As Maryland celebrates 10 years of protecting student journalists from arbitrary censorship, a Student Press Law Center analysis found that most of the state’s school districts have student media policies that comply with its New Voices law.
Two bills introduced by the Georgia House of Representatives last month mark the first time in recent years that the state has considered legislation to protect student journalists from arbitrary censorship by school administrators.
Myesha Phukan is an advocacy intern for the Student Press Law Center and a co-winner of the 2024 Courage in Student Journalism Award. If someone asked me what New Voices was three years ago, I would have looked at them with a blank expression. Now, if the same person asked me that same question today,… Continue reading Why I joined SPLC: An intern’s perspective on defending the student press