By Cooper Hofmann

The New Media program is a relatively unknown program on campus, but should be a lot more popular. Everyone with a creative drive should consider joining, because it’s far too much fun to miss out on.

New Media is closest to an art program, one which focuses on letting those with an artistic inclination flourish. Within it, students are given the opportunity to learn not one, but two Adobe products, which would cost over $150 in subscriptions to learn on your own.

Although New Media may not seem that different from the Granada Guaranteed Curriculum (GGC) program as there are few “exclusive” New Media classes, the classes that students receive are quite interesting. New Media gives them insight on how to navigate excessively complicated Adobe products like Photoshop and Illustrator with ease. The followup course, American Images, lets students expand their horizons even more with these tools, giving them experience in graphic design.

But, it isn’t the courses themselves that make New Media special as a program. What makes New Media special is the opportunities students have to be creative, and the friends you meet in your cohort classes. There’s really nothing like being in a room full of people who love to make things.

Everyone has such vivid imaginations, so the energy is absolutely electrifying. As a cohorted program, students keep the same classmates, allowing everyone to grow with each other throughout their time at GHC.

“The cohorts are amazing,” junior Nygel Baker said. “Everybody knows each other, and after all this time in the program, it all feels like we’re kind of a big family.”

Along with cohorts of like-minded students, the program gives students chances to attend art shows and take field trips to unique spots around Los Angeles. In the final class in the New Media program, Filmmaking, students have the opportunity to create their own short movies and recreate scenes from famous films like “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.”

“I really joined just for filmmaking,” Saavedra said. “But honestly, I stayed because of how the program inspired me. It’s had a huge impact on my high school career overall.”

New Media is a one-of-a-kind roller coaster that really stands out on the GHC campus. It’s difficult to find a place where you can truly feel connected with a group of people, learn interesting things which keep you engaged across your entire high school career, and explore your passions in such a free, open environment. For many students, the New Media program is exactly that.

“I’ve learned to collaborate with a lot of people,” junior Stephanie Saavedra said. “You get exposed to many different types of them because the options we get to communicate with each other are great. Plus, the places we go are all super interesting.”