About Jessika Officer

Age: 16
MMmmmmm...... what could I say about myself..........? Well, I joined Y-Press in the early months of 2003. I came in as a young, quiet, and shy girl eager to learn about the world of journalism. I loved to read and write, but my communication skills were not up to par. Those skills improved quickly when I began to form questions and interview all kinds of youth. Being a Y-Press member for five years, I have traveled to places outside the Indianapolis area like IU in Bloomington to participate in a Writer's Workshop, and Benin, West Africa to interview youth about their growing democracy. Now, I am still quiet-but not shy- and when as before it was hard for me to form my own opinion and present it rationally with others, now,I sometimes have to consciously hold my tongue to hear what other people's opinions. Y-Press has given me some pretty cool experiences, and I have a few stories/reviews to show for it: Poverty Feeds the Child Slave Trade, Teens Consider the Possibility of a Military Draft, Students Would Ask Where Writers Get their Book Ideas, Home Away From Home, Inclusive Classrooms, Youths Reach Mini Finish Line, and Ahh, Summer: A Great Time to Turn Some Pages.

Interests: Music, Dance, and International Relations.

Hobbies: Playing the guitar, dancing, singing, and reading.
Favorite Color: Black- but usually all colors are my favorite colors
Favorite Book(s): Little Women or The Kite Runner (can't decide)
Favorite Movie(s): Meet Joe Black
Favorite Food: pizza
Favorite YPress Story: Poverty Feeds The Child Slave Trade

Stories by Jessika

	Poverty feeds the child slave trade By Jessika Officer, 14 COTONOU, Benin -- Amavi guesses she's 13. She doesn't know her last name or her native village. And she has survived canings, hard labor and a desperate yearning to see her mother.
	Home away from home By Rebecca Salois, 17, Jessika Officer, 15, Mihir Kumar, 13 Firdas Abamislimov, 15; Abdullah Abamislimov and Yusuf Abamislimov, both 12; and Maleyka Musoyeva, 15, were born in Russia and miss their friends and family still there, but they consider themselves lucky. Their ancestors were deported from their own country more than 60 years ago, and as Meskhetian Turks have faced a long, hard struggle. About 70 of these refugees are working to make Indianapolis their home.
	Inclusive classrooms By Olivia Haynes, 16, Shelby Helton, 16, Jessika Officer, 15 Emerson Barnett believes that he is successful today, in part, because of mainstreaming. Being included in typical classrooms allowed him and his classmates to face his cerebral palsy head-on.