For the first time since 2007, budding student journalists at Battle Ground High School can share their voices, highlight peers, staff and happenings on campus in print.
The Tiger Times student newspaper has returned at BGHS thanks to teacher Ryan Karraker, who said it will be an official class option beginning next school year.
Karraker spent several years working for The VanCougar, a campus newspaper for Washington State University. He then taught journalism for six years at Amboy Middle School before coming over to Battle Ground High School.
Karraker was inspired to fire up the printers for the Tiger Times and recruit some students to revive the Tiger Times as he said he is an avid newspaper reader and thoroughly enjoys reading news.
“And I think giving students a voice is kind of cool and having an extra avenue or outlet to showcase some of the cool things [happening at BGHS],” he said.
The students in the class are learning to be inquisitive, develop strong leads for their articles, an objective point of view and other journalistic practices. Last week, the 16 students in Karraker’s class were busy pumping out its ninth edition and also reviewing news articles to improve their skills.
“Each week they do a news article analysis where I force them to read the news and they pick out the main elements of news stories and then … they’re hopefully going to get a better grasp of what good journalism looks like and/or what bad journalism looks like, too,” Karraker said.
For senior Jaden Denis, the class has opened him up to meeting new students and possibly sparking an interest in journalism beyond just a high school class.
Denis said he has learned how to talk to people and has enjoyed his classmates and especially Karraker.
“At first, I wasn’t really talking to much people, but I got to talk to more people in the school — people I’ve never met,” Denis said.
Karraker’s classroom includes a plaque of past Tiger Times newspaper award recipients, which abruptly ended in 2007. Karraker said no one really knows why the newspaper was shuttered.
Denis believes the entire class deserves a spot on the plaque under improved journalist because everyone has improved since day one, he said.
Isabel Brown, another senior journalist for the Tiger Times, said the class has opened her perspective up to all that teachers and other Battle Ground High School staff members actually do.
“My favorite one, that is the one I’m writing now, our counselor Mr. Santilli is opening a thrift store for the school,” Brown said, adding Santilli’s thrift store on campus will offer shoes, pants, shirts and more for only $1.
Copies of the Tiger Times are sent to staff and parents digitally but can be picked up by visiting the high school’s main office.
