Annika is a senior at Urbana High School in the graduating class of 2022. Her addition to the newspaper will help bring awareness to current issues and keep people up to date on recent events. As a child, she was exposed to her mother’s success from starting out as an editor and reporter throughout her high school and college career to working as a freelance editor for a publishing company. This sparked Annika’s interest in writing and English to continue her mother’s legacy. After graduating, she aims to attend FCC and transfer to Hood College to pursue a degree in social work.

During the summer, Annika enjoys surfing and spending time with friends and family. She also volunteers at an art camp from summer through the end of November to inspire younger kids to pursue art. In the colder seasons, Annika enjoys the cooler weather and being able to spend more time outside comfortably. Her family and friends would describe her as kind-hearted, creative, and always searching for new people to add to her friend group. She’s ecstatic about having the opportunity in contributing awareness about local issues in her community.

Some of Annika’s favorite things to do include sketching and looking for new ways to acquire crystals or little trinkets. Her favorite bands consist of any artist from The Killers to Fleetwood Mac. Annika is very passionate about music and is open to discovering additional artists to add to her playlist. She loves bumble bees and Scottish Highland cows. Due to her highly empathetic nature, she puts other people’s needs above her own and hopes to channel these emotions in a productive way by writing for the newspaper.