Members of the 2021-22 Network newspaper staff gathered at school on July 17 to get a jump start on the upcoming school year.

Every staff member brought an ice cream sundae topping to share. With everything from marshmallows and Twizzlers to homemade brownies and gummy bears, seniors were able to create original ice cream sensations. National Ice Cream Day was July 18, so they celebrated a little early!

The group then moved to Room 304 and starting the brainstorming session. Before getting into the nitty gritty, editors Elleiana Green and Anna Rasgorshek led the group in a thumb war contest to get the energy flowing. Senior graphics editor Liv Birnstihl was named the Thumb War Queen.

The editors also introduced the staff mascot, Perry the Platypus. Senior Indepth editor Jordan Moser quickly adopted him for the rest of the meeting.

The staff members set goals and then brainstormed coverage ideas for the back-to-school paper. Students should watch their school email addresses for a data-gathering Google survey.

If you know of anyone who travelled and might have great photos of a summer experience, please let senior photo editor Clare Degan know right away. (22.clare.degan@omahamarian.org).

Special thanks to the staffers who recently attended NHSPA J-camp at UNL.