Last fall the high school’s student paper reported on how young people responded to the Holiday Farm wildfire; now the pandemic is the theme, with 34 students writing stories and helping produce the eight-page paper
By DEAN REA/Chief Correspondent/The Herald
How students deal with COVID-19 is described in the February issue of The Billie Bulletin, a student newspaper that can be read online via the Pleasant Hill School District website.
The paper has been appearing since 1926, says faculty adviser Tim Meinzen, who teaches newspaper and yearbook classes. He taught history and publications starting in 1984 and retired in 2019 but continues as a contract publications teacher.
The paper switched to on-line publication in a PDF format four years ago and is issued five times a year.
In preparation for producing the February issue, Meinzen taught Adobe InDesign to eighth-graders Angel Calva and Kati Dutton so they could help create pages. They served as editors. Thirty-two other students wrote stories and helped produce the eight-page paper.
Stories often relate to topics of student interest. Last fall for example The Bulletin described how students responded to the Holiday Farm fire in the McKenzie River area east of Springfield.
How COVID-19 has influenced the lives of students was the theme of articles in the February issue. They were written by Angel Calva, Kurt Perini, Katie Dutton, Jordan Pierzina, James Gordon, Claire Crawford, Emily Krauss and Lena Daniel.
Love was the theme of Valentine’s Day-inspired articles written by Payton Wolbeck, Lorena Albright, James Brock, Benjamin Rodrigues and Jacqueline Pineda.
Ellie Epperson wrote an opinion piece about “Diversity Matters.” Tessa Hammond acquainted readers with Native American culture.
Ellie Bahen and Lillian Rodrigues wrote teacher profiles. Richard Adams recounted Pleasant Hill history. J.J. Seitz reviewed a favorite band, Evelyn Evelyn.
James Gordon described his bow-hunting experience.
If you want to know how to pilot a drone, ask Carl Anderson.
Noah Bernacki drew a President’s Day cartoon with a COVID-19 theme.
Longtime Oregon journalist Dean Rea, widely known for his years as a University of Oregon journalism educator and editor at The Register-Guard in Eugene, serves as a founding board member and senior writer for The Herald.
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