The trip started off with a visit to The Country Music Hall of Fame. Students went around the museum, visiting various exhibits featuring some of the most famous country music artists. Afterward, Advisor Tracy Anderson introduced a group project, in which students were tasked with walking through the museum and interviewing locals about the songs that have shaped their lives. 

From there, the staff made their way to Nashville’s Music Row for a tour of RCA Studio B, the legendary studio used by Elvis Presley, Dolly Parton and a multitude of other famous musicians. Students were able to sit on and take pictures of the very same piano Elvis Presley was famously photographed leaning against.

“It was so surreal that we were standing in the same spot that famous names like Elvis Presley stood,” said Lucy Lowenchuss, one of the students on the trip. “I learned so much and the history in the building alone was jaw-dropping.”

Students ended the night back at the Opryland convention center, to hear from Pulitzer Prize winners Jessica Gallagher, Alissa Zhu and Toluse Olorunnipa. Gallagher and Zhu were two of the journalists on The Baltimore Banner team that exposed the drug overdose problems in Baltimore, bringing to light the truths of the issue and who it really affects. 

For Zhu, speaking at the convention was a full-circle moment. She once attended the conference as a student; now she was the journalist that students had come to learn from.

“We thought it’d be a great idea [to come and speak,] because we want to be able to share how we did our work,” Zhu said. “I think it’s a good way for The Banner to get more exposure in different places across the country. And I think it was also really important to be able to talk to young journalists to hopefully help them learn more about the field.”

Jessica Rothstein, a journalist with the Communicator, thought it was inspiring to hear how one even starts the process of writing a Pulitzer Prize winning piece.

“It was interesting to hear how long they took to even just take a picture in some instances because they were trying to make those important emotional connections with families,” Rothstein said. “It was really cool to learn from professionals at such a high level about how they work through their process. It made me realize how we could do the same thing for our articles because they all start in the same place.”

On Friday morning, students woke up to a packed day ahead. First on the agenda was attending conference sessions organized by the convention. Every hour, there were over 30 new sessions to choose from, ranging from podcasting and leadership management to learning to write southern stories.

To round off the day, students attended the Grand Ole Opry show. The lineup featured country music artists such as Ashley Cooke, LANY and Kelsea Ballerini. Founded in 1925, The Opry marks its 100th anniversary this year. Long considered a cultural institution in country music, it’s more than  just a show, it’s a symbol of the genre’s history and legacy. Through the years, the show has promoted many styles of music: early “hillbilly” music, bluegrass, honky-tonk, gospel and now more modern country.

Gabe Deedler, a senior attendee of the trip was not particularly looking forward to the night at the Opry, but was pleasantly surprised with the experience. Deedler has never been a fan of country music, but kept an open mind during the show and ended up enjoying himself.

“I didn’t think I would like that kind of music,” Deedler said. “I was surprised how different each musician was from the last, but they all looked so comfortable on stage. There was also something special to be said about seeing it all live.”

On Saturday, after another round of sessions, journalists from around the world gathered in the ballroom for the award ceremony. Name after name was called over the two and a half hour period, with the Communicator bringing home 19 awards. “The Communicator Magazine” and the Literary Arts Magazine—”VOICE”— both won first place Best of Show, and the yearbook brought home eighth. Other various individual awards were won across all publications.

Students spent their last night in Nashville on the dance floor at Category 10, a venue with live music, food and line dancing and was many of the students’ favorite part of the trip.

“Line dancing was a great experience,” LaTarte said. “We all got to learn something new, but also mess up together. It made me feel free.”

As the students headed to the airport on Sunday morning, they reflected on their experiences of the trip. The students were all grateful for the opportunities the trip offered and excited to bring what they had learned back to the rest of the class.