By Gavin Rivera
Longwood High School
At a young age, Hennie England was launched into the world of photography by her father. Now the 15-year-old Huntington High School sophomore dreams of becoming a photojournalist.
“My dad was very into photography when he was younger, and he’s given me his old cameras,” Hennie said.
When she was about seven, she discovered her father Steve’s National Geographic magazines. “My dad had a collection of magazines that I was obsessed with as a kid. I thought they were so cool,” she said. Initially she was drawn to the pictures. But eventually she dreamed of working for the magazine and traveling. “At that time I also wanted to be a photographer, so being a photojournalist was my two biggest dreams combined.”
Growing up with two younger siblings — Behan and Tillie — her household was loud and overwhelming. Hennie said she found comfort in the books and magazines her father had given her. As she grew up, her interest in history and photojournalism pushed her toward cinematography and directing. She enjoys watching cult classics like “Pulp Fiction” and “Whiplash.”
Hennie and her classmate and best friend Sophia Curley are currently making a short feature for submission to the Long Island Youth Film Festival in September.
Although interested in film, Hennie is more drawn to history. She has participated in events such as National History Day since sixth grade. Natural History Day is an academic program for middle and high school students to help build their passion for historical research through doing projects. Students choose their topics, conduct research and make presentations such as exhibits, documentaries, performances and plain old term papers. The students’ work is then judged in local and state competitions.
Hennies topics included the Nuremberg Trials, actress and inventor Hedy Lamar, naturalist Charles Darwin and most recently, the Island Trees vs Pico Supreme Court case. In that 1982 case, students at Island Trees High School in Levittown pushed back on a book ban and were supported by the justices. For her work on that litigation, Hennie won the Mike D’Innocenzo Outstanding Entry on Long Island History Award, given by Hofstra University.
That project was especially meaningful to her. “I became really passionate about fighting censorship,” she said. “So forming my opinion about that and connecting it to current-day book bans and censorship in America were the most interesting parts to me.”
Hennie’s passion is evident to friends like Sophia Curley. “She’s done amazing work in her school and photography class,” Sophia said. “A lot of the stuff we talk about is usually about politics and current events. She’s always had very strong political opinions but presents them in a way that’s more factual, which is what a good journalist does.”
“I became really passionate about fighting censorship,” she said. “So forming my opinion about that and connecting it to current-day book bans and censorship in America were the most interesting parts to me.”
– Hennie England
Hennie said one of her heroes is Dorothea Lange. “Dorothea is my biggest inspiration for journalism. She’s famous for documenting the Japanese internment camps and the Great Depression. I did a school project on her in eighth grade, and that’s what made me want to pursue journalism.”
Hennie hopes to learn to improve her skills in the Robert W. Greene Institute for High High School Journalists. “My dream is to bring knowledge to the people,” she said, “and learn everything I can through this program.”
“Being big on opposing censorship, I believe everyone should be educated on what’s going on around them, and I hope to be that teacher.”