As many of you know, the high school paper in our small town of Adrian has been cancelled indefinitely. As a former high school newspaper editor, former Media Law student and journalism grad, I feel that I have a vested interest in this issue, as well as in the lives of these student writers. To these students, I would like to say this:

In high school, I wrote an article about a friend who was killed in an auto accident. I was not willing to compromise my integrity, so I wrote truthfully: the accident was caused by this young man's alcohol consumption. To make a long story even longer, the article was published by a national magazine and I finally saw my name in print. What I didn't know was that several issues of the magazine were sent to my school and distributed. My first byline brought great pride, and also a great amount of personal turmoil. For a few days, I was ostracized by many. Now, for the point of the story:

My high school English teacher, Mrs. Cackley, pulled me aside and shared some words of encouragement. To paraphrase, she said, "Sara, when you decide to write, two things will happen. One, you will open some people's eyes and provide a public service for them. Two, an even greater number of people will hate either what you wrote, you personally, or possibly both. This is a choice you must make. To write, or not to write. I think you should continue to write, and to write for the first group."

This is my challenge to you: Write. If you are truly a writer, you will never be able to keep inside the feelings you have. Writers are more observant than most; it is in their blood. Unfortunately, these observations are often seen as unwanted criticism of established ideas. Forget the people who say that. You owe it to the public, however small the appreciative portion may be, to share your unique view and style with them.

Click below to read my letter to the editor of the town newspaper

Dear Editor:

As a former high school newspaper editor and Truman State University journalism graduate, I feel I have a vested interest in the recent cancellation of Adrian's high school paper, the Drumbeats. Without the opportunity to write for a high school newspaper, students do not receive the training, the constructive criticism and the peer review that is necessary for advancement in the field. Even if a writer has natural talent, he or she needs to hone these skills for public consumption. The dissolution of Adrian's high school paper denies students these opportunities.

It is my understanding that the school board and the administration suspended the Drumbeats publication because the writing was "too negative". I will offer two rebuttals for this analysis: First, the Drumbeats has published several positive pieces, including interviews with incoming and outgoing staff, a feature story on a champion high school skateboarder and a piece on the school's new cafeteria management. The so-called 'negative' pieces are found on the editorial page, where students are and should be allowed to share their observations and opinions. Second, a journalist is not merely negative; he or she is highly observant and critical in order to present new ideas to the public. To dismiss this type of writing is to deny the public this service.

I also understand that Adrian High School has the right to censor certain articles that "interfere with the requirements of appropriate discipline", as the Supreme Court case of Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier proved in 1988. But we should remember the dissenting opinion in this case as well, delivered by Supreme Court Justice Willliam Brennan. "[This paper] was not just a class exercise in which students learned to prepare papers and hone writing skills, it was a . . . forum established to give students an opportunity to express their views while gaining an appreciation of their rights and responsibilities under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution . . . ."

Let us not continue to refuse these students the right to speak, and to make a name for themselves in the world.