To Whom It May Concern:

Adrienne Koch is one of the finest student journalists I've worked with.  She joined the staff of the Megaphone during her senior year at Central Kitsap HS, and right from the start she plunged in with enthusiasm and skill.  I urge you to consider her for a position on your publication staff. 

Adrienne has demonstrated great potential as a journalist in three areas:  feature writing, editorial writing and photojournalism.  Her feature stories always go beneath the surface to probe the important human issues at stake.  Her interviews draw out intelligent, thoughtful responses from her sources, providing the quotations that make her stories so engaging. 

She has an inquiring mind and a genuine concern for other people; this makes her a dedicated and sincere editorialist.  Her editorial on the negligence of local officials to address problems at a dangerous traffic intersection adjacent to the school won honors from the Washington Press Association this spring. 

In addition, her interest in photography proved to be an invaluable asset to the newspaper here.  Without any formal training in photography or darkroom work, she taught herself the basics of both, producing good quality photos for the paper each month.

I highly recommend Adrienne for any internship or paid work you can offer her.  I promise you will not be disappointed in her efforts.  She will need help at first in editing her stories, because I generally don't emphasize the finer points of AP Style as much as I perhaps should.  Other than that, Adrienne's abilities and devotion will make her an asset to your publication.

Sincerely,

Andy Barker, Journalism teacher, Central Kitsap High School