A Bit About Me
Hi!
I am Gavin Murray, and I am a communications senior at Alexander W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts. I major in Forensics and Journalism, where I am the Morale Editor & writer on the school's newsmagazine The Muse. As the Morale Editor, I am in charge of ensuring a safe and enjoyable working environemnt! Outside of school, I like bike rides to the beach, spending time with family, and listening to old music. I also love to learn about history, listen to podcasts, and meet new people!
My Time on The Muse
August 2025 - May 2026
Morale Editor
August 2024 - May 2025
Content Team Editor
August 2023 - May 2024
Writer
Currently, I am the Morale Editor on the publication. This means I am responsible for maintaing a safe + loving place to do journalism; I do this by decorating the classroom, creating Team War events, and organizing the end of year banquet to name a few.
My junior year, I was selected as a Content Team Editor, where I led and edited for a team of two photographers and two writers. Further, I continued producing stories of my own, such as the second Issue's editoral!
My sophomore year, I joined The Muse newsmagazine as a coverage staffer. As a coverage staffer, I wrote opinion, alt-format, and informative stories (in print + web) to help educate my school community.
Photos!
My Reflection of being a Student Journalist
Out of everything I could have been, I never expected to see myself as a journalist. Maybe writing an article did not seem exciting, or maybe other paths simply felt more appealing. In a way, journalism found me.
Freshman year, I rarely picked up the print issue of The Muse that staffers passed out during lunch, much less visited the website. I might have skimmed it at open house, or if a friend was featured, but at that point it was only a blob of text on paper: I had no idea how much more it really was.
The next year, I joined The Muse, somewhat spontaneously, as a coverage staffer. I quickly learned that journalism is far more than typing words into a Google Doc. Stories and journalism is a collective art form. From interviewing performers after a music show, to sending my articles through four cycles of edits, each published piece represents teamwork and intention. As I wrote more, my ability to dig deeper, create comfortable environments for sources, and weave statistics, perspectives, and humor into something meaningful became apparent. While these are skills I developed on The Muse, they extend far beyond my writing. As I grew, so did my understanding of minority viewpoints, ability to ask thoughtful questions, and my innate love of being curious.
However, no writer succeeds without making mistakes, but the key is not making the same one twice. I have learned this through transcription fails in my Lip Dub story, lack of source diversity in my Musiq story, and an unclear angle in my editorial. Yet, with each piece, my writing improves.
As I embark in my last year on the staff, I am grateful for what journalism has provided me. From being a voice to others, to meeting new people, The Muse has greatly strengthened my desire to inform and help others. Most importantly, I am thankful for the rest of the staff, who contiously have created a family-like bond. They have always supported, uplifted, and cheered me on. As Morale Editor, I am so lucky I am able to do this for them as well.
In the end, it is very clear that being a journalist will teach you a million things. Personally, It shaped how I see people, stories, and the world. For that, I am grateful it found me.