Queens Rookies Alexis Gordon and Jessica Cernadas ran the Rookies table at the NYC Young Artists & Leaders Festival on Saturday, June 5th. Downtown Art organized the festival as an opportunity for young artists to show their work and see the creative work being done by others their age.

This one time, I skipped school. When my mom found out (the school actually called...) she slapped me.  I was shocked.  It was the only time she’s ever done that, and the rest of the day was pretty awkward because she was so mad.

We took a group of 14 Rookies from the Bronx and Queens down to Washington DC to see the sights. There were 17 of us, traveling on a double-decker bus, staying in a hostel.

This fall, we began a new broadcast workshop in Flushing, Queens in partnership with the Flushing YMCA. During the past month, the Rookies have started to roll through their lessons, putting their new skills to practice. They are well on their way to making their radio documentaries.