In a world that has come to be defined by infinite scrolling and unlimited digital information, a small group of Holderness students have taken on a decidedly countercultural task: publishing a newspaper.

Like generations of students before them, the writers and editors of The Picador are focused on reporting the news that matters to Holderness students. Any given issue will feature everything from movie reviews and opinion pieces about the school's dress code to "Holdy Hot Takes," where students share their unfiltered opinions about life at Holderness. The Picador is a student-run club, and all aspects of the publication process are student-directed, from story ideation to writing, editing, and layout.

 By Students, For Students 

Today's student writers and editors are continuing a tradition that dates back more than 100 years. In 1922, students founded The Dial, a student newspaper that adopted a more formal, magazine format after its first year. A later generation of students broke away from that formality when they founded their own newspaper, The Bull, in the early 1940s.

Holderness School Archivist and history teacher Dr. Jennifer Martinez wrote about The Bull in the current issue of Holderness School Today, our alumni magazine:

“One fun fact is that The Bull newspaper was actually started by alumnus and renowned poet, Robert Creeley ’43, as a newspaper written by and for students with no adult supervision as they felt that The Dial was much too formal at the time (AR.29.9). Creeley said that the name comes from ‘bull session’ referring to an informal discussion and that it consisted of ‘articles, notes, jokes, and cartoons.’

 Tradition Meets Today 

Today's students live in a much different world than the one in which The Bull was created, but many aspects of life at Holderness remain the same. Perhaps most importantly, The Picador gives students a chance to work together to create a publication that amuses and delights their classmates - just as it did back in Robert Creely's day. 

When students distribute the latest issue of The Picador in the dining hall (now a phone-free zone) and their classmates eagerly read its contents, it's clear that while many things have changed since Creely’s day, the joy of reading news written by students - and for students - hasn’t changed a bit.