After a successful start to the initiative last year, The Royal Gazette’s National School Salute is back and even bigger than before.

Now expanded to include Bermuda’s middle schools as well as its high schools, the series of school newspapers will be featured along with The Royal Gazette’s daily newspapers from Monday, May 9, until May 20. The order in which each school’s paper will be published is:

• May 9: Sandys Secondary Middle School and Clearwater Middle School

• May 10: T.N. Tatem Middle School, Whitney Institute Middle School and Dellwood Middle School

• May 11: Somersfield Academy

• May 12: CedarBridge Academy

• May 13: Bermuda Institute

• May 16: Berkeley Institute

• May 17: Mount Saint Agnes Academy

• May 18: Warwick Academy

• May 19: Saltus Grammar School

• May 20: Bermuda High School

Each school has worked closely with The Royal Gazette team, led by youth and education correspondent Sarah Fellows, to create a unique school paper that shares students’ achievements and ideas through articles written largely by student writers.

“The intent of the Salute is to instil pride into the education system and give the young people of our country a platform to voice their concerns, solutions and hopes for the country,” Ms Fellows said.

This year, the school papers are based on eight main themes: education, economics, entertainment, environment, health, human rights, labour, and law and politics.

Student writers were given the chance to interview other students, staff and alumni from their schools and get their opinions on topics related to each of these themes, both in their school and in Bermuda as a whole.

The result is a collection of diverse ideas, hopes and accomplishments that represent Bermuda’s young adults.

But the National School Salute does not only include these feature papers, but several other components that promote community awareness of Bermuda’s education system.

The streets of Hamilton will once again be decorated with school colours and commuters will be greeted every morning of the Salute as they drive into work by students from each school.

Alumni are encouraged to show their school pride over social media and by wearing their school colours on their school’s Salute day, and students will share their school spirit throughout the day.

Ms Fellows has also worked with the XL Catlin Bermuda End to End organisers in motivating students to participate on May 7 and create a wave of school colours walking across the island.

As a platinum sponsor for the event, The Royal Gazette will have a National School Salute-themed tent with surprises for participants when they visit.

Jonathan Howes, CEO of Bermuda Press (Holdings) Ltd and one of the creators of the National School Salute, explained his view on the Salute’s benefits.

“Sarah and I believe that students are the leaders of tomorrow and we should be listening to them now as a community when making decisions about the country they will one day lead,” he said.

• Eryn Bhola is a student at Warwick Academy