Staff

The staff for the 2020-2021 school year are listed below in alphabetical order. 

ALLAN AYALLA

Allan Ayala (Soft News) is a senior creative writer who loves to write fiction that primarily focuses on characters and dialogue. He lives in the Belmont Cragin neighborhood of Chicago and you could find him skating, biking, recording or drawing anywhere in the city. Allan has won a Silver Medal in the Scholastic Art and Writing awards, along with multiple honorable mentions. He hopes to make a living by making movies and screenwriting. 

ANGEL BAYLOCK

Angel Baylock (Soft News) is a senior creative writer who majors in fiction writing, where they mostly explore realistic fiction.They live in Logan Square and one day hope to be an independent writer / publisher of their own short stories and poetry, though they don’t plan to be heavily committed to it. They were a Fiction and Art editor for ChiArts’ literature magazine, Levitate Magazine, and they have won multiple awards for the Scholastic Art and Writing Competition.

SKYE BRUNER

Skye Bruner (Hard News) is a senior creative writer who is an aspiring poet. Skye will mostly dip into real world problems and local school debates. Born and raised on the South Side of Chicago, she hopes to become a journalist or a sports news anchor in the future. Skye has been a published writer since 2017.

GRAY DAWSON

Gray Dawson (Management) is a senior creative writer, who tends to focus on poetry. He is dedicated to creating a voice for the unheard through his writing, and showing the world that it’s okay to not be the norm.

MIA DUSENBERRY

Mia Dusenberry (Management) is a senior creative writer who is interested in pursuing editorial design and hopes to make The Double Space more accessible and user friendly to students and staff. She also likes to write articles about school politics and the latest fashion trends. To get to know Mia better follow her on instagram @miadusen, or contact her through email.

ALEX FRIEDRICH

Alex (Hard News) is a senior creative writer who is a strong advocate for human rights. Alex is very outspoken and passionate and hopes to show that in their work. They mainly focus in fiction and write stories that highlight queer love and trans joy.

VALERIE HOOSER

Valerie Hooser (Hard News) is a senior creative writer majoring in poetry. Her work consists of recent news stories, styles of writing, and being a Chiarts student. She lives in Ukraine Village and has dreams of becoming a big success in the future with her passion. Her work has been published in ChiArts Writes and for the ChiArts Foundation.

FOTINI MARIS-ASIMAKOPOULOS

Fotini Maris-Asimakopoulos (Management) is a senior creative writer whose work varies (entertainment, psychology, emotions, and more). She lives in North Park in Chicago, and hopes to become a clinical psychologist and get her comic published (or at least out there) in the future.

ISAIAH ORTIZ

Isaiah Ortiz (Soft News) is a senior creative writer from Chicago. Their work seeks to play around with the idea of relatability: how can you make a complete stranger relate to you on a personal, emotional level? Although they’re not entirely sure where they want to take their craft, they hope to possibly work with music in the future.

JOSH PHILLIPS

Josh Phillips is a senior creative writer who enjoys writing mostly non-fiction about places from around the world. He takes inspiration from foreign filmmakers Wong Kar-Wai, a Chinese director who directed the 1994 Chinese hit “Chungking Express.” Josh resides near Humboldt Park in Chicago, Illinois. He plans to attend University of Illinois Urbana in Champagne, Illinois.

LONYE SCOTT

Lonye Scott is a senior creative writing poetry major. She tends to write anything that comes to mind. She’s a very out-of-the-box and rhythmic writer. While reading her work you will find yourself in sorrow or other times angry — you even might catch yourself laughing. There’s always something unexpected and new to look forward to in her pieces.

ANIA SWIFT

Ania Swift came out of her mother April 17, 2004 — so that means she’s an Aries baby. She grew up with her mother’s side in a neighborhood called Belmont Cragin. There she learned so many things about growing up. Her mom passed away in 2011 and it had an effect on her. She started writing in middle school and her love and passion for it expanded, which led her to end up at ChiArts. All her writing and everything she does is for her family and her mom.