Kennedy Rose
by Harrison Miller
Dressed in all black with a notebook in hand, a 9 year old Kennedy Rose spent her time “investigating” local cases. One day, she ran up to interview a firefighter, who had been called to her neighbor’s house, about the cause of the fire.
“Someone left some paper towels too close to the stove,” the firefighter said.
“Ah, a clue!” Rose exclaimed.
Years later, the aspiring detective would become an award-winning reporter, and intern for the Dow Jones News Fund.
Born in Patchogue, N.Y., Rose began her career in journalism as a freshman at Bellport high school. There, she was recruited for The Clipper, the award-winning school newspaper.
During the first week of classes, Rose’s English teacher handed her a note that said, “You’re going to the meeting for the HS newspaper, I’ll see you there.”
“It was definitely a little intimidating to get [the note] in class,” Rose laughed, “but I’m glad I went.”
That meeting was enough to spark her passion, and Rose has been a reporter ever since.
Rose initially started writing music reviews for her favorite albums before moving on to covering bigger events, such as the school’s art and talent shows. Rose was named senior editor her final year with the paper.
That year, Rose did an investigation into the water quality of Bellport’s drinking fountains. Through her research, she found the school’s water was contaminated with fecal matter.
Her article, “Taking Swigs of Sewage” was widely read in the state and caused the school to fix the water waste.
Rose’s story earned her Story of the Year and Student Journalist of the Year for the 2016 Hofstra University/Long Island Press High School Journalism awards.
Following her graduation, Rose enrolled in Syracuse University and was admitted to the Newhouse School, arguably the nation’s top journalism school. Currently, Rose is studying Newspaper & Online Journalism and writes for The Daily Orange, one of Syracuse’s student-run publications.
Professor Steve Davis, Rose’s former mentor and retired Chair of Newspaper & Online Journalism at Newhouse School, has nothing but praise for Rose.
“She’s ambitious, intelligent and very curious,” Davis said. “She covers topics not just to get a story out, but because she’s genuinely interested. She also has a real social conscious which is why I think journalism is such a good fit.”
Outside of journalism, Rose is a quad-roller skater, and has been a fan ever since her aunt would take her to skate on weekends when she was little. She describes her skills as intermediate, but Rose is capable enough to handle a half pipe and eventually wants to compete in roller derbies.
“I’ve never actually done roller derbying in my life, but I’ve gone to a ton of bouts,” Rose said.
“I first saw it in a movie called ‘Whip It’ with Ellen Page and it was the most inspiring thing ever… I love being around a bunch of other strong women, it’s like football on roller skates!”
Post-graduation, Rose hopes to continue her reporting career at Fast Company, a print and online business magazine focusing on technology, business and design.