The Titan Spectator, West’s student-run paper, could be cut due to district budget cuts after six years of production. The decision is yet to be made, but will be voted on at the end of the month.
The Spectator staff is fighting to keep their class by emailing, calling and sending letters to school board members. Editor-In-Chief, Hailey Duggirala, made an appearance on KATU 2 News alongside her Senior Editor, Alec Palm, to bring attention to the possible cut.
The staff understands why their class is in jeopardy.
“When our principal met with us, he gave us plenty of reasons for cutting us,” Palm said, “The reasons included that our class is smaller than average; we have 23 students in our class, compared to other classes/programs who have over 30 students.”
In addition, class adviser Scott Taylor is needed as a full-time social studies teacher at West, according to Salem-Keizer Public School spokesperson Lillian Govus.
The Spectator staff maintains that the school has neglected their class.
“They’ve never spent a single minute in class with us, to truly see how much we love this paper and how it is actually benefiting us more than our normal core classes,” Palm said.
If shut down, the Titan Spectator would no longer be printed out as a newspaper but will be posting stories on their website instead.
“We are a voice for the voiceless,” Palm said, “We refuse to let them take our paper, voices, and passion away from us.”
Link to Titan Spectator GoFundMe:https://www.gofundme.com/Titanspectator
