Jared Weber is a rising senior at Chapel Hill High School in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. He has been a writer and section editor for his school newspaper, Proconian, for the past two years, and will be a co-editor chief for his senior year. He loves the news and hopes to find his future career in journalism. He also enjoys playing tennis, singing with his a cappella group and playing the violin.Jared Weber: Living In His Own Newsroom
By: Brandon Callender
If you’re looking to find Jared Weber, a 17-year-old at Chapel Hill High, you can usually find him in the Proconian’s office.
In his junior year, Weber was the editor of the arts and entertainment section of his school’s award-winning paper, as well as a sports reporter. In his upcoming senior year, Weber will inherit the title of editor-in-chief.
Similar to how Weber edits the arts section of his school’s paper, an entire arts section could reflect Weber’s life. Music plays a large role in his life because both his mother and older brother are pianists. Following in their footsteps, Weber was expected to pick up an instrument.
Being given the freedom to select whatever instrument he desired, Weber chose the violin. When asked why he chose this instrument, Weber said, “I thought of the violin as an instrument with potential.” Expanding on this idea, Weber brings up how the violin can easily crossover genres, with it going from the orchestrated pieces of the 17th and 18th centuries and then being used as a fiddle in the rock bands of today.
He says that this early interest in music really got his “creative juices flowing.” In addition to instrumental music, Weber began singing in the eighth-grade after one of his friends began an a cappella group, called Beau Brummels.
Weber says his hectic schedule, prevents him from being bored, which he describes as the “worst possible feeling [thing].”
Being involved in music and other activities grants Weber access to a myriad of people. Weber describes himself as willing to go out and make friends with those who have similar interests to hims. In contrast, Weber paints a picture of his best friends, depicting them both as “hardworking but with different goals.”
A ‘people’ section about Weber’s life would fill pages with stories about the people he has met.
Of course, the people who are apart of Weber’s daily life the most is his family. Weber cares greatly about family, saying the following about his mother: “My mother […] is the best possible person to become.” Weber cites his multicultural household for being the cause for his strives at greatness. Weber says he receives his sense of family and drive for success from his mother’s Puerto Rican and Chinese heritage respectively.
Weber’s drive for success is not limited to music. Weber started playing tennis as a child, which he attributes to his mother’s high school tennis career. His passion for the game however, he attributes to his father’s Weber’s experience on the tennis court allows him to better convey the emotion of an intense game when writing.
Weber says that he’s always “working,” constantly staying involved in extracurriculars. He knows his problem with this attitude is simply that “I worry that I cannot give my own best effort.”
To keep his head on when cornered by the mass murderer that terrorizes all of high school education, formerly known as “deadlines,” Weber finds himself focusing on what he finds most important to him. Weber puts his schoolwork before anything else, completing that before starting any other projects.