Braden Schiller (far right) and other members of the founding staff of The Prowl stand in adviser Vin Cappiello’s (not pictured) classroom in September of 2017. This photo was used for The Prowl’s first story ‘The Prowl: it’s here…and it’s news.’

Photo courtesy The Prowl

Braden Schiller

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In May of 2016 I was a junior, already afraid of graduation because I didn’t know what I wanted to be when I grew up. I was terrified and anxious, more so than usual at least.  

Amidst all these emotions I sat in a small chair across from my high school counselor and at her suggestion I tentatively decided to enroll in the high school’s journalism class — it was a new offering and she thought it could be a good fit. 

Aside from finding a life path I was also trying to figure out who I was at that moment in time. I had swam for the past five years and quit after my junior season. I had also decided I didn’t want to go into occupational therapy even though I had gotten as far as being accepted into college programs.

When the first day of class rolled around it  was slow going for everybody including myself. Our teacher Vin Cappiello had recently left Cody High School and was doing his best to teach a bunch of students who were good at English class how to write and think in a way that the school had not taught us before. Eventually we got the hang of it. 

Cappiello, or Cap as we liked to call him, would remind us that we were journalists. But he would then remind us we were people first.

It wasn’t long before I fell in love with this type of writing and the idea of being a journalist.

The second semester of that school year I became the co-editor in chief. I also named our paper The Prowl.

In my time writing and editing there I learned more than how to be a journalist — I became more inquisitive, more confident and more understanding. 

Now a professional journalist, I've continued to be a dedicated reader of The Prowl. I've watched their success and covered it gladly when I can. The paper still frequently focuses on people first; their stories focus on the person or people behind an event, and the writers then do their best to showcase these people in the community.

Two weeks ago they won their second consecutive All-State award under the leadership of adviser Amy Moore, editor in chief Emma Johnson and associate editor Jimmy Dees who have a great stable of section editors and writers. 

Two former members of the Prowl’s editorial team, Lucy Jane Crimm and Gabby Paterson, have been so influenced by the The Prowl that they came to the Tribune as interns. And now Johnson, The Prowl’s editor-in-chief, is an intern at the Tribune as well.

I stop by the classroom occasionally and see a lot of students from different walks of life, all working together to tell the story of Powell High School from their own viewpoints. The best stories are the ones unique to the place and people you cover, I like to think that the students of The Prowl have always understood this, biased as I may be.

Journalism as a class and a profession can be overlooked. It doesn’t pay like it would to work as an engineer or a doctor, but it still has value. For students it can teach independence, conversational skills, writing and organization. They don’t have to choose it for a career, but it will help them in whatever profession they do decide on. As journalists, we aspire to tell stories that may not otherwise be told and give recognition to the good men, women and children who deserve every ounce of it. 

I'm glad to see The Prowl recognized as the best student-led publication in the state. Those who want to see for themselves can go to phsprowl.com. 

I’m sure you’ll find something to like throughout the publication’s website, but I recommend choosing anything marked with a SNO (Student News Organization) badge. Moore and her students work hard to win these recognitions and they are worth every minute you spend reading them.