A Note from the Editor-In-Chief:

For the past month, a small group of my Journalism students have been acting incredibly suspicious in class. Chromebooks have slammed shut every time I wander near. Assigned articles have gone unfinished with no explanation. Conversations will loudly mention my last name, and I will look up to an entire table of students sneaking a glance at me, only to whip around in a terrible attempt to not look suspicious.

Today, I got an answer to my suspicions; like an investigative reporter sneaking into a government building to uncover the truth, my journalists have been acting in secret to create an appreciation article for me.

The one flaw in their master plan? The only person that can approve posts to the Cavelero News website is the same person they wanted to surprise. Which is how I ended up editing my own celebration article.

I have always taught my students that to write as a journalist means to focus entirely on the objective truth and suspend whatever opinions, feelings, or biases we already have. Approving the publication of an article that sings my praises feels pretty counter-productive, and more than a little egotistical (also I really wish they chose a better picture of me for it). But given how much care and passion clearly went into this truly moving tribute, I’ll put my usual journalistic ethics to the side, just this once.

Thanks, kids. I love and appreciate you too.

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Journalism with Mr. Fraser has been a once-in-a-lifetime experience. We have had fun throughout the year with games, fun entry tasks, jokes, and of course lessons about journalistic writing. Mr. Fraser goes above and beyond to make sure all of his students are safe and feeling good. 

Ever since we stepped foot in the classroom of NorthWest 217, we have felt nothing but happiness and enjoyment. Not only do we enjoy the class, but we enjoy the company of our teacher, Mr. Fraser, who makes the class far more enjoyable than it already is thanks to his perfect combination of playfulness and seriousness.

Mr. Fraser is a teacher that we will be sad to say goodbye to. He makes us excited to learn, is full of advice, is kind, helpful, and truly cares. To express our appreciation for the Father of Journalism, here are the voices of his journalism class of 2022-2023.

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Mr. Fraser is what I like to call a rainbow teacher; he reveals to his students a rainbow of possibilities. Yes, we know we drive him crazy, and we try our best, but the fact that we can even make the jokes we do is insane. I have never felt more comfortable in a class before, he makes you feel like you can just be yourself. I have never been so grateful to step into a classroom before, he made sure I wasn’t alone. He sat me next to people he knew I would just click with. 

My first article, I’m not gonna lie, was not my best. But Mr. Fraser helped me the whole way, teaching me until I started showing growth and improvement. I have learned so much from Mr. Fraser. He even helped me edit my story for the writing competition and I ended up winning with his help along the way. He also isn’t afraid to prank his students and it adds great personality to the classroom. 

This has been one of my favorite school years in my whole life just because of this class. I wish Mr. Fraser many years of excitement and joy. He has given me the confidence I needed to become better at writing, grow, and never give up, and he’s always cheered me up on my bad days. I am so thankful for the help Mr. Fraser has always provided me with. Thank you Mr. Fraser for being a true girl boss. -Paige Phillips 

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I started the year thinking I was going to fail this class because I never believed in my writing abilities. Mr. Fraser has changed that. When Mr.Fraser sees I am upset he goes out of his way to ask what is wrong. If I need to, I can always talk to him for advice. I appreciate that he does check up on me whenever I show the slightest of being upset. Even when I got injured, when I asked to go to the nurse he had a look of genuine concern on his face. 

I also love the fact that Mr. Fraser does not shy away from making jokes about/with the students. Mr Fraser also stands at the door and has communion with his students every day, he truly does care for what his students have to say. Additionally, not that long ago I was having a horrible experience with my self-esteem and stress. He checked up on me and when I did not want to talk yet he said he would be at his desk when I was ready. Thank you for being a girl boss! -Adama  Jaw 

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In all honesty, when I signed up for Journalism, I thought it was scrapbooking. Turns out it was not. I thought I wouldn’t pass this class, but as the months went by, I found that I had amazing writing skills, along with a bond with Fraser. He’s always so supportive and gives great advice when he can.  He even helped me be comfortable with my gender identity and taught me to accept myself. I feel much better about myself than I have ever. He has taught me, along with everyone important lessons, and I, along with everyone else, am thankful to have Fraser as a teacher, a true girl boss. -Moxx Obina 

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Mr. Fraser is hands-down one of the best teachers I’ve EVER had (also one of my favorite classes). This will be my first and last year of journalism; during the first few months of being in this class, I was enjoying this elective and was planning on writing at the High School next year. Now, I do not plan to do that. Mr. Fraser has left such a memorable, heartwarming impact that I know cannot be replicated. Even though I dislike when the class gets a little loud, it’s always nice to hear my classmates be comfortable.

I can see why some of my brother’s friends at LSHS remember him clearly as one of their most-favorited teachers and club members. I would like to end journalism as a whole with only the positive memories made in this class. Thank you so much for everything -Nara Mapp 

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Mr. Fraser has forever changed my life. When I think of teachers or even people who impacted my life I think of my goofy journalism and speech/debate teacher. I think about the guy who on the first day of school called me funny looking and called my mother to tell her how well I was doing. I could write a book on all the incredibly funny insults and comments Mr. Fraser has made, but that would take effort. Mr Fraser has forever contributed to my happiness and I wish that everyone gets the opportunity to meet him -Camille Beeler 

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He’s a fantastic teacher. Has a lot to give and receive for the students in this classroom. Not afraid to make a joke every so often. His charm is appreciated by everyone. He’s pleasant to be around and talk to when something wrong happening like an article. He helps everyone working to learn how to write better for everyone so we succeed. He’ll make sure that everyone gets the article done so no one fails. I have learned more from writing than any other class in just one semester. I now know how to write to make sure I can get a good grade in English and communicate better -Alaric Bender 

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Mr. Fraser has been my favorite teacher thus far. He inspires all of his students to learn and grow. He is passionate about journalism and makes the lessons fun and simple to learn. He is a very patient and understanding person and is always available when we need help in any way. I look forward to going to journalism every day because of the environment he’s created. He’s made a great positive impact on my academic life as he’s taught me how to be a better writer. -Melissa Cachu-Ramirez

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Walking into Mr.Fraser’s class the first day, I was unaware of what I should be expecting from the environment of journalism and how he teaches it, although maybe I should’ve by 4th period since I had him two other periods at the time. In my first article, I could barely put words onto a document. I always have loved to write, just hesitant to do so. But with Fraser’s guidance, I’ve never felt more confident in my entire life to write something, even beyond an article. I’ve made many connections with myself, but also other people in this class by getting involved with this elective -Kali Crandall 

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Mr. Fraser is one of the best teachers I’ve ever had. There have been several times over the year when I was struggling with an assignment in my English class, and every time I asked, Mr. Fraser always helped me and even took time to further educate himself on the topic to make sure he was helping me the best way he could. He even has taken the time to look over things I have done for my business and marketing class, including letting me put him down as a reference on my resume. Truth is, I’ve never seen a teacher care about his students like Mr. Fraser does. Whether it is school-related or not, Mr. Fraser is a teacher that I have always felt like I could talk to and because of this I will forever be grateful for having Mr. Fraser as my journalism teacher. -Joyanna Deines

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Mr. Fraser is an outstanding journalism teacher who is passionate about his work and dedication to his students. He goes above and beyond to help his students succeed and inspires them to be curious, creative, and critical thinkers. He creates a safe and inclusive learning environment where students feel comfortable expressing their opinions and ideas. His enthusiasm for journalism is contagious, and he instills that same passion in his students. Mr. Fraser is not only a great teacher but also a mentor and a role model. Thank you, Mr. Fraser, for being an amazing journalism teacher! -Lillian Dillon

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Mr. Fraser was always there to help, never afraid to crack a joke or two (good or bad). Even if he didn’t know what specifically it was that you were writing about, he was always trying to learn new terms. When we were not hard at work he always made sure something productive or fun was happening, bringing brightness into everyone’s day. I plan to do something along the lines of journalism in the future so I took this class for the experience on a resume but came out with great memories from my favorite class. Thanks for everything, Mr Fraser. -Chad Greaby

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I chose this class by accident and I never thought that it would be such an enjoyable class, this class is probably my favorite class to go to. I thank all the friends I made in this class, and I thank Mr. Fraser. -Nickolas Jenkins Morales 

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I have to state that my ultimate inspiration comes from Mr. Fraser. From teaching English to Speech and Debate, then finally Journalism, this strong man many look up to and dedicate their hard work to, has unsurprisingly become many students’ favorite teacher this year. Mr. Fraser has never given anyone the idea that they couldn’t do whatever they wanted to do or be whomever they wanted to be.

He fills the classroom up with love, fun, books, and music, and putting in the most effort to be a role model for his students through classwork, such as putting life and fun into characters like Odyesseus in English, letting students speak their mind through opinion pieces in Journalism, or putting a fun twist on the Lincoln Douglas Debate in Speech and Debate. Thank you, Mr. Fraser. You are my guidepost for everything. Anyway, please don’t be a stranger to us in the future. -Kami Mora.

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Journalism is an amazing class to go into, it teaches you a new aspect of how things work. Mr. Fraser made it complete by teaching every student how to write a well-rounded article to present to the whole school. Somedays are better than others but we get a lot of feedback for our articles. Journalism is a fun class, we learn so much about everyone in the class and it’s so helpful for what we want to do in the world. We discover new interests that we never knew we had. This school year was a blast with Mr. Fraser as the teacher. -Isa Ha’ani San Luis

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Mr.Fraser is a very kind and comforting person. He is always there for his students and always makes them feel welcome which is such a rare thing for teachers nowadays. I will forever remember Mr. Frasers’ kindness and the motivation he gave me and everyone else in his classes. He pushes his students to be their best and I know that he will continue to do that, wherever he teaches till the end of his teaching career, no matter the subject. Thank you, Mr. Fraser, you’ve made all of us feel special and cared for. You truly are a girl boss. – Ellie Tredway 

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Being a teacher (especially for middle to high schoolers) is very difficult, but being a good teacher is even harder. He is kind and caring of all his students, his teaching method is unlike any others and he finds a way to help his students understand and remember the lesson being taught. Mr. Fraser is one of the very rare teachers that care about not just their students’ grades but their well-being. He is real with everyone, an amazing characteristic to have these days. I believe everyone comes into his classroom and feels the weight be lifted off of them. Mr. Fraser has a great sense of humor and laughing with friends in his classroom is always the highlight of my day. Thank you Mr. Fraser for being the best teacher ever. -Keely Vincent 

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Mr. Fraser is always very quick to care and his humor is excellent. I don’t know the exact number of years but I would say we have worked together for about five to six years around there but we’ve met in friend circles. I took over the anime club from his mother, the former Liberian Miss. Fraser. Mr. Fraser also showed love and enjoyment for anime and it’s been a great partnership ever since. -Mr. Everett 

Thank you Mr. Fraser