The Harbinger newspaper that reports on student life and concerns at Miami Lakes Educational Center returned in a print edition in April.
Senior Thomas Farrugia and sophomore Robert Rojas are part of the journalism program at the school and led efforts to revive the newspaper.
For past five years, school news has only been published online because there weren’t funds to publish on newsprint, too.
In addition to finding the money, resuscitating the print version of The Harbinger also required the right team of students to work together and bring it back to life, according to teacher Michelle Castillo.
Thomas is the current editor-in-chief and Robert is the editor-elect for the 2026-2027 school year.
“We started this [project] in January,” Robert said about plans to print four issues of the newspaper during the school year.
Castillo led the staff of journalists who put together the edition for the spring term. They printed 1,000 copies.
“They are the dream team,” Castillo said of the young editors, reporters, photographers and ad salespersons.
The kids wanted to produce a physical newspaper because they feel it
encourages student engagement; expands the reach of their work; lasts longer than a view on social media and helps inform classmates who don’t have to go online to keep up with what’s happening, a Harbinger story about their efforts said.
Its eight pages are also a place for those who want to express themselves creatively, through reporting, writing and photography, the story said.
Among the reports are stories about artificial intelligence used by artists; what it takes to get to the top of the class at MLEC; a profile of a teacher of AP Pre-Calculus and geometry; the winning performance of the school’s culinary team; how climate change affects the development of children’s brains and the growth of a Christian movement on campus.
The students lay out the paper in Adobe InDesign desktop publishing software and sell ads to help pay for printing.
Robert and Thomas are why the newspaper is circulating in the halls of MLEC, Castillo said of the newspaper’s leaders.
Together the pair worked with The Harbinger staff and other students to resurrect it.
“It’s the kind of thing kids aren’t used to doing ... it requires them getting out there hustling and making calls,” Castillo said.
Even Principal Yaset Fernandez joined the effort to support the newspaper with advertising.
“We actually had the principal buy and pay for an ad for the Cambridge Academy,” Robert said.
The hardest part about selling ads was gaining the trust of business owners who were not used to buying space in the publication from students, Robert said.
Advertisers so far include The Boba Spot in Hialeah and Lakes Orthodontics in Miami Lakes.
The paper must be self-funded by the students and be sustainable.
“It’s $500 to publish [the paper version] every time,” Castillo said. The website alone costs about $130 per year, she said.
The team had trouble finding a printer and had decided to publish an e-newsletter.
But Staff Writer Gianna Michel used her reporting skills and went to Miami Dade College to find out who their printer is, Castillo said.
Sun Coast Press in Venice won The Harbinger’s contract.
Castillo hopes that with the systems in place and the leadership of the students, the paper will continue to have its print version.
“It’s a dream come true,” Castillo said about teaching students who are called to be journalists.
MLEC is at 5780 NW 158th St. To read The Harbinger online, visit MlecHarbinger.org.