About CatlinSpeak

CatlinSpeak is dedicated to providing ethical journalism to the broader Catlin Gabel community. We strive to use student voice to educate, entertain, and present local and global news to community members.

23-24 Staff

Olivia Morrison ‘24, Co-Editor in Chief

**Olivia Morrison** is a senior at Catlin Gabel. This is her second year as a writer for CatlinSpeak, and her first year as the Co-Editor in Chief. She first became interested in journalism by reading the Oregonian and the New York Times. Outside of school, Olivia loves to spend time outdoors in the beautiful nature of Oregon and thrift with friends. Listening to music is also one of her favorite pastimes. Some of her favorite artists include the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, and Paul Simon. At Catlin, she leads the Bring Change to Mind club for mental health advocacy and is a member of the varsity basketball and tennis teams. She is interested in writing pieces about student interests and topics that are relevant to the entire Catlin community.

Elise Kim ‘25, Co-Editor in Chief

**Elise Kim** is a junior at Catlin Gabel. This is her first year as a writer for CatlinSpeak. Having been raised in Oregon with an active family, she loves outdoor activities like hiking and skiing. She always enjoys playing organized sports such as soccer, basketball, and tennis. She also appreciates a night at home curled up with a fiction novel, playing card games with her two younger sisters, writing her own short stories/poetry, or baking. Elise is also the co-leader of the REquip Soccer Club and the Multi-Culti Club. She is interested in covering sports as well as sharing stories about Catlin community members. As Co-Editor in Chief, Elise hopes to increase CatlinSpeak’s visibility and importance in the Catlin community by writing stories that feel relevant to students and faculty.

Harper Davis ‘24, Content Design Editor

**Harper Davis** is a senior at Catlin Gabel. This is his first year writing and serving as the Content Design Editor for CatlinSpeak. Harper was born and raised in Portland and has been going to Catlin since preschool. He has a sister that also goes to Catlin, and has 4 cats at home (not 9!). Harper considers himself a nerd and has taught himself programming since the age of seven. Even though one of his favorite activities is coding games, he also enjoys the outdoors and likes to ski on Mt Hood during the winter. Harper is excited to write for CatlinSpeak and expand the website. His goal as the Content Design Editor is to clean up the website and add more interactive elements, such as games. Harper wishes to write about things he is passionate about, like Computer Science. Harper also enjoys it when funny things are taken to their logical extremes, and he wants to write a few things like that too.

Violet Bouwes-van Nood ‘24, Co-Director of Marketing

**Violet Bouwes-van Nood** is a senior at Catlin Gabel. She started writing for CatlinSpeak in her sophomore year, then took a year-long break, making it her second year. She is part of many clubs including Global Economics Club, Feminism Club, SAGA, and Breaking the Barrier. Additionally, she leads Bring Change to Mind (mental health club) and Food Bank Club. She loves to work and has had many different jobs. She currently works in retail in the Moda Center and works with kids. She loves the outdoors, is an Outdoor Leadership Board Member for 4H, and is involved in other 4H programs. Outside of school and work, she is a big Swiftie and Harry Styles fan and loves all things pop culture. In fact, it is one of her favorite things to write about. Additionally, she is very interested in politics and hopes to keep Catlin students updated and educated on current events.

Ayaan Sait ‘24, Co-Director of Marketing

**Ayaan Sait** is a senior at Catlin Gabel and this is his first year writing for CatlinSpeak. Ayaan is interested in a variety of subjects at school, especially economics, statistics, and the humanities. Ayaan plays squash year-round and plays golf in the spring. During the year, he leads three clubs at Catlin Gabel: Global Economics Club, Student Led Art Classes, and Peer Buddies and Jelly Club. Ayaan's favorite snack is Haribo gummy bears. Ayaan is a big fan of the Seattle Seahawks, Portland Trail Blazers, and FC Barcelona. He is interested in focusing on professional sports in his writing, but also looks forward to writing articles about sports teams at Catlin Gabel.

Lewis Anderson ‘24

**Lewis Anderson** is a senior at Catlin Gabel. This is his first year as a writer for CatlinSpeak. He has been described as engaged and passionate about the things and people he cares about. He has lived in Portland for his whole life with his family and cat, Bilbo. Bilbo is a black and white tuxedo cat who loves belly rubs. He enjoys being outside, fishing, and reading. At CatlinSpeak, Lewis is interested in looking at sustainability at Catlin and current issues. Specifically, he is hoping to write opinion pieces that make people stop and consider.

Tia Chakrapani ‘27

**Tia Chakrapani** is a Freshman at Catlin Gabel, and she will be embarking on her first year at CatlinSpeak. She is passionate about advocating for social justice and environmental issues. In her free time, Tia enjoys swimming and finds solace in the water. Tia also enjoys spending time with friends and family. She believes in the importance of preserving natural environments, especially the oceans and waters that she holds dear. With a deep-seated desire to make a positive impact, Tia is excited to blend her talents as a writer with her passion for social justice, environmental conservation, and swimming. Through CatlinSpeak, she hopes to raise awareness about these causes and inspire positive change within the student body and beyond.

Erin Chow ‘25

**Erin Chow** is a current junior at Catlin Gabel and has been attending Catlin since preschool. This is her first year writing for CatlinSpeak but she has been interested in taking this class since freshman year. She became interested in the class after starting to read more news articles during the pandemic which inspired her to further learn more about journalism. Erin lives in Lake Oswego with her parents and Shih Tzu dog, Teddy. Within Catlin, Erin plays on the volleyball team and participates in a variety of clubs such as The Blood Drive Club and Gift of Care. In her free time, Erin enjoys spending time with friends, listening to music, traveling, and baking. This will be Erin’s first time publishing professionally, however, she hopes to explore a variety of topics all the while strengthening her writing skills. She is excited to see what her first year at CatlinSpeak holds for her.

Hadley Cress ‘27

**Hadley Cress** is a freshman at Catlin Gabel. This is her first year writing for CatlinSpeak. Hadley loves playing volleyball and being social with her friends, especially outdoors. She also likes reading and listening to music to relax and enjoy downtime. Hadley became interested in journalism after talking with her neighbor, a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist. His work inspired her to explore journalism. Hadley wants to write to inform others about what is happening at her school and help initiate change.

Chip Downes-Le Guin ‘25

Junior **Chip Downes-Le Guin** is in his second year at CatlinSpeak. He first became interested in journalism after talking to his sister’s boyfriend’s sister and decided to take the class. He hopes to apply his learning from last year to produce bigger and better projects. Chip’s interests at CatlinSpeak lie in the larger systems of Catlin Gabel like the student government and sports, but he wants to use his creativity to come up with new ideas. Outside of class, he enjoys playing basketball and walking desire paths around campus. When he’s not playing basketball, you can often find him cooking with his friends, or playing board games with his family. Chip is excited for the year ahead at CatlinSpeak.

Brittney Haldorsen ‘25

**Britney Haldorsen** is currently a junior at Catlin Gabel. This is her first year writing for CatlinSpeak. She became interested in journalism during the Covid-19 pandemic when she had so much time on her hands and began to write all the time. She realized she quite enjoyed it and wanted a role in which she could explore her interests. Brittney leads 3 different clubs: Breaking the Barrier, a club that she co-founded with her sister to help the houseless community in Portland, Bring Change to Mind, and Black Student Union. Outside of school, she enjoys playing basketball and tennis. On the weekends Brittney finds herself hanging out with friends and going thrifting. At home, she lives with her mom and her sister, who now live in New York City. In the future Brittney hopes to bring the knowledge of CatlinSpeak to college, in hopes of minoring in journalism.

Amare Kaainoa ‘24

**Amare Kaainoa** is a senior at Catlin Gabel, and this is her first year writing for CatlinSpeak. She became interested in journalism by reading music reviews, eventually developing a blog of her own that features reviews and ratings of French albums, written all in French. Amare spends a large portion of her time playing music and thoroughly enjoys picking up new instruments. As of now, she plays acoustic and electric guitar, bass guitar, piano, ukulele, and sometimes likes to mess around with a harmonica. Amare is primarily a homebody, however, when she chooses to go out, it’s usually on wheels. Being a part of the Rose City Rollers, Portland’s roller derby league, has taught Amare how to be aggressive, communicative, and confident, all while remaining kind. She hopes to get a similar experience out of CatlinSpeak by finding a platform to share her and the community’s voices.

Vishaka Priyan ‘26

**Vishaka Priyan** is a sophomore at Catlin Gabel and this is her first year as a writer for CatlinSpeak. She first became interested in journalism after running her middle school newspaper through the COVID-19 pandemic and realizing the profound impact journalism can have on communities and the people in them. At Catlin, she is part of multiple community engagement clubs such as SLAC, a club that allows her to connect with elderly people through art, and PB+J, a club that allows her to connect with other kids who are on the autistic spectrum through service for Blanchet House. Outside of school, Vishaka is an active community member, working with foster youth all over Portland and running two charity golf events on behalf of her favorite non-profit organization. She is interested in writing relevant pieces for the Catlin community that will uphold the voices of students.

Holland Swan ‘24