Dakota Hill was sitting at home when his dad walked in with grave news. Dakota’s great-grandfather had passed away.
“I could see my dad visibly upset … and (that) hit me as well,” Dakota said.
Although he didn’t see his great-grandfather very often, Dakota says that his great-grandfather deeply influenced his dad, and indirectly Dakota and his values.
Dakota calls that day in seventh grade the “defining moment that changed me as a person.”
“I know that not every day is a guarantee,” he says. The experience has made him much more open in expressing his appreciation for people.
And Dakota, a 17-year-old junior at McNary High School, now views each day as another opportunity to make a “positive, truthful impact” on the world.
At the same time, he admits that having that kind of a sunny outlook doesn’t always come easy. He considers himself an extreme perfectionist, fighting that “inner battle of me wanting to be very best at everything I do.” Case in point: even though he has a 3.9 unweighted GPA, he still feels disappointed that he’s a mere tenth from a perfect 4.0.
Yet Dakota’s drive to get better isn’t about perfectionism as much as it’s about a desire to grow.
Before attending the High School Journalism Institute, he had only a semester of experience with journalism. Many students might not dedicate a week on a pursuit to which they were relatively new, but not Dakota. Journalism is special to him.
“I really enjoy talking to people and finding more information,” Dakota said. “With anything in life, information is power.”
Dakota is particularly interested in sports journalism. A lifelong fan of the Baltimore Ravens, he grew up watching high-profile athletes be interviewed on SportsCenter, thinking it would be cool to be the interviewer. He also likes sports journalism’s openness toward dissenting opinions.
It’s been several years since Dakota’s great-grandfather passed away, but Dakota still looks up to him. His great-grandfather’s emphasis on honesty, even when not convenient, continues to resonate with him today and fuel his approach toward life.
For Dakota, it boils down to a single maxim: “I’m always trying to make this next thing I do better than the last thing I do.”
— Karthik Krishnamurthy, Westview High School
This story was produced by student reporters as part of the High School Journalism Institute, an annual collaboration among The Oregonian/OregonLive, Oregon State University and other Oregon media organizations. For more information or to support the program, go to oregonlive.com/hsji.