I'm Patrick Shepherd, a 12th grader and newcomer to Journalism & The Leaf. In the past I was in the Aves News Network, working on the Video Announcements (I assembled the iCarly/Drake & Josh intros from last year, for example). However, that class is no longer running, and since my love of film and creation remains, I discovered The Leaf provided another great opportunity to broaden my experience further.

I've always enjoyed making films, and I push myself to ridiculous levels of quality. I spend hours on one-minute Flipgrids. I polish 10-point assignments to TV quality. I spend more time writing the script than most groups spend creating the whole project. And all for no other reason than the fact that I enjoy it. I look for every opportunity to overdo class projects, which paid off as early as 4th grade; I submitted a film to a national competition in NY and it made it to the state level. So when you see a video made by this program from now on, there's a very good chance I had a hand in its creation.

Beyond Journalism, I run for the Cross Country and Track & field teams and have been since Jr High. As well, I have a passionate love for cars, and the mere presence of a motor vehicle always brightens my day. I also have a broad interest in various random subjects including but not limited to Orbital Mechanics and Space News, Natural Disasters & Meteorology, and American Law. Beyond that, my free time is generally filled with combinations of Youtube and Video Games.

I can't wait to work on projects here and to see what we create. This final year is shaping up to be a great one!