Flonora Merritt Class of 2008
Story and photo by Aneara Burns.
FPCS alumni are some of our greatest role models and inspiration, and Flonora Merritt is no exception. Ms. Merritt is the Friendship News Network advisor and webmaster at Friendship Collegiate High School. I had the pleasure to sit down with Ms. Merritt to discuss her experiences at Friendship as a student as well as her career experiences and life after graduation.
Aneara: If there are any future plans for your career, would you mind telling us?
Ms. Merritt: I would still like to work with Friendship News Network. I've been with the program so long, even as a high school student, and I really have developed a passion for video production, photography and video editing. So whatever I do in the future, or wherever my path takes me, I hope I can still do that. And then maybe in some shape, or form, use my degree. I have both a bachelor’s and master's degree in criminal justice.
Aneara: How did you choose this career path?
Ms. Merritt: When I was in high school, I got involved with Friendship News Network, and that was back when we produced a magazine. I was always a pretty passionate writer, even though I was a kind of a quiet kid. My English teachers, Ms. Hemphill and Ms. Tinde really enjoyed my work. They recommended me to Ms. Kaufman, who is the current head of our program, and she absolutely loved my writing. That was back in 2007. Ever since then, I've been working on and off with FNN, even as a college intern. When I was younger, I had a strong interest in criminal justice–my sister is a member of the Capitol Police force, and my mom was always watching the crime shows. The study of criminal justice involves figuring out why people commit crimes and what led them down that path, and that was something that was interesting to me. But as I grew older, and as I continued working with our program, I realized our program could help and prevent teens from going down that path, because when we're providing them with a skill set, we're also giving them a platform to speak their truth and to address issues.
Aneara: What are some of the challenges that you have faced pursuing your career today?
Ms. Merritt: I think that's a good question. There are times when some people may not fully understand or appreciate our program, or what we offer. I think that the biggest thing I'm really facing now is with this pandemic, because there was a time when I really questioned, can we still do what we do? Can I still teach what I usually teach while we're in this virtual setting, while we're in quarantine, because this pandemic showcased the economic challenges that we have with our students in terms of whether it comes to technology or computer internet access. During the pandemic I was taking workshops–luckily for free. They were talking about journalism and how to report on and do stories online. I saw there weren't that many minorities. There were a lot of white kids and white teachers. I think I might have been one of the few black people and, to be honest, I don't even think they thought I was an advisor. I was still baby-faced. That motivated me to keep pushing to try to get things done and still produce content while in the virtual space. The good news was that we were able to publish one video, but I'm hoping to publish more. It's just a matter of not only keeping myself motivated, but also keeping the students motivated, because we are talking about important things—like with my second block. They are currently working on a project about gun violence in DC, and that's something that affects a lot of people–especially at Collegiate, with our students and scholars.
Aneara: What advice would you give to our Friendship scholars today?
Ms. Merritt: The best advice that I can give our scholars is to tell them that there are times when things are going to be bleak. There are going to be times when you take major losses, trust me. Most people have probably seen my successes. But there were times when I had endless rejection letters. There were times where things have not worked out, when things have flopped, and that's going to happen. The best thing that you can do is to really look at your mistakes, study them, see what went wrong, and then get yourself back up and try again. Failures are going to happen. You're going to seem like you're lost or like you're going to face defeat, but you can't stay down, you have to pick yourself up. After you’ve had your moment, it's okay to cry it out—eat your feelings for a bit. But at the same time, you have to pull yourself together, assess the situation and keep pushing. I faced that even when I was trying to buy a condo, with all the rejections that I got because money talks and people were taking the biggest bid, but I kept pushing. I have to say, you may be down at the moment, but don't stay down even if things look hard. If you keep pushing, then things will always look up, and you'll be stronger for it.
Aneara Burns is the FNN Alumni Editor and a sophomore at Arizona State University.