Dear Ms. Coker,

I have been in your class for three years and regretted not being in it for one. I am so glad to have been your student and I wanted to thank you for putting up with me for the time I was in your class. You have an endless amount of patience and give out fantastic life advice! Plus I actually know how to use a camera now, so that’s pretty cool.

Being in newspaper has taught me so much and allowed me to really grow as a person. I’ve been able to go from being too scared to talk and interview a person when alone with them, to being able to waltz into a room and announce that I need to interview that kid there, like right now (this is also thanks to your encouragement and telling me to just go interview them already).

You have been wonderful and I really admire and respect you, not only as a teacher but as a guide. Teachers, especially ones like you, seriously deserve more credit than they’re given. Putting in long hours toward yearbook, reading newspaper articles, and helping me to edit photos in photoshop even though you’ve shown me how every single time and yet I still forget (sorry about that).

More than anything, being in your class has taught me to seek the truth, whether it be for a story or for myself. For that, I’m not sure how to repay you.

Thank you for the past three years,

Caitlin McKeand