Redmond High deserves a well-funded, appreciated student newspaper | Guest Column

As adviser to The Blaze newspaper for most of my 34 years at Redmond High School (RHS), I was very interested in the Redmond Reporter’s article about the newspaper’s financial and structural problems. I commend Ms. Badger and the students for keeping the paper alive in some form.

By Doug Kimball • September 18, 2015 5:16 pm
Doug Kimball
Doug Kimball

As adviser to The Blaze newspaper for most of my 34 years at Redmond High School (RHS), I was very interested in the Redmond Reporter’s article about the newspaper’s financial and structural problems. I commend Ms. Badger and the students for keeping the paper alive in some form.

On the other hand, it’s with a heavy heart that I feel a lack of commitment in the school as a whole for the Blaze. It has been an integral part of the high school since it opened in 1964. If you want to read history of RHS, go through all the old issues of the Blaze. No other record of school activities, athletics and opinions exists in such detail.

Additionally, the experience that the Blaze gave to hundreds of students can’t be replaced. Some went on to careers in journalism, advertising or photography. Others gained confidence by being part of a student-run club that was the mouthpiece of RHS. Students have few places to really express their opinions these days. The Blaze offered them that opportunity and educated them on the freedoms and responsibilities of their First Amendment rights.

I enjoyed my tenure at RHS because the school gave students a well-rounded education. Current times seem to place so much focus on math and science that some of the critical liberal arts elements of the curriculum take a back seat to what’s currently in vogue. This is a mistake.

I encourage the school’s administration and ASB to bring back the former funding sources for the Blaze. When I was adviser, the Blaze was a class during the regular school day and the paper was published at least eight times a year. The ASB paid for two thirds of the cost of the Blaze and the staff of the paper raised the other third through ads and fundraisers. I don’t consider this a huge burden on ASB resources. Rather, it demonstrates a commitment to the importance of school journalism. A school of Redmond’s stature deserves a well-funded, appreciated student newspaper that is part of the school curriculum. To not do this devalues the importance of the First Amendment and denies students a critical experience in their education.

Doug Kimball was a Redmond High teacher from 1974-2008.