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Ryan White Can Never Teach in Utah Again5/18/2018 Stalking Injunction From Former Student Still Active, School Continues to Deny Publication of StoryBy Conor Spahr For News online It has been half a year since former Herriman High teacher Ryan White was fired for employee misconduct. After The Telegram’s initial story, local news networks uncovered that Ryan White was under investigation by the Unified Police. Unified Police Lieutenant Brian Lohrke told Fox 13 that the Herriman High School resource officer received a complaint in September from parents of a student, alleging White sent the student "inappropriate messages." The investigation ultimately lead to the decision by The Herriman City Attorney's Office to not file charges against White, according to the Deseret News. A stalking injunction was also filed by a former female Herriman High student against Ryan White. It prohibits him to “contact, phone, mail, e-mail, or communicate in any way with the Petitioner, either directly or indirectly.” Both the attorney of the student and the student herself declined to comment. Ryan White’s attorney did not respond to our request for comment. We have included a link to the stalking injunction below, with certain information redacted in order to protect the identity of the petitioner. Ryan White was also under investigation by UPPAC, the Utah Professional Practices Advisory Commission, which describes itself as “maintaining and promoting a high standard of professional conduct and ethics among Utah teachers. It is advisory to the Utah State Board of Education in making recommendations regarding educator licensing and disciplinary action for educator misconduct.” Their investigation started in October 2017, after a complaint was lodged on September 5th, 2017, according to public records uncovered by The Telegram. View the following image of the complaint: The investigation was launched “regarding allegations that [Ryan White] ‘crossed appropriate boundaries with a student over a period of several months.’” Steve Oler, an attorney for UPPAC, said that their investigation into Ryan White has been concluded. White and his counsel moved to “surrender his teaching license”, according to Oler. In the surrender, it was stated that White admits “that he engaged in communications with a student, that were not sexual in nature, over a period of several months and after the student graduated; and that his conduct in participating in those communications crossed appropriate boundaries.” As a result, White can never teach in the state of Utah again, and he will be placed on a national registry that other states’ education boards can view. On March 15th, 2018, a notification of the invalidation of Ryan White’s educator license by the Utah State Board of Education states the reasoning as “Mr. White engaged in an inappropriate relationship with his students, which included text messages, gifts, and meeting outside of school. Mr. White voluntarily surrendered his license with discipline pending.” Herriman High School has removed and continues to prevent publication of this story on the official school newspaper, The Telegraph. ABC 4 states that “A spokesperson for the Jordan School District says they were worried about inaccuracies—that's why they took the story down.” The above information makes clear why Ryan White was terminated, and Herriman High continues to prevent reporting of the story. Note to the reader: We have attempted to present all the facts in an unbiased way in an attempt for you to form your own opinion. You can read all the GRAMA released documents online at the case-sensitive link www.bit.ly/Telegram-Files.
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Conor Spahr, Publisher
Herriman High school and its surrounding community have a crisis on their hands. The public school has had its seventh student suicide of the 2017-2018 school year, 17-year-old Nicholas Swint. According to the Salt Lake Tribune, authorities say it’s still too early in the probe to know whether the incidents are linked by anything other than location. Jordan District spokesperson Sandy Riesgraf says that "A specialist with the Utah Medical Examiners Office is currently conducting extensive research on the situation. We are working closely with a statewide coalition to provide all resources needed." Classmates gathered last week to hang thousands of yellow ribbons around the school, the symbol for suicide awareness. Students walking through the hallways the past several days will have noticed hundreds of sticky notes put on lockers and walls around the school, each with a few short friendly words on it. This week, balloons were placed on student’s cars, and coupons from local restaurants like Sodalicious and Sonic were handed out with a message reading “You are worth more than gold!” Almost every student has been affected by the tragedies this school year. Riley, a senior at Herriman, says that “I wake up and realize my friends aren’t here. All I have now are memories, and it’s frustrating that school is only now taking action.” It’s not uncommon to find students angry with the school administrator’s apparent lack of action. “It should’ve been taken care of and talked about before the first suicide, not after the seventh.” says Riley. Trevor Nelson, a junior at Herriman, says “I appreciate the administration trying to help [with] tee-shirts, post-it notes, and being greeted in the morning, [but that] isn’t going to help anyone in this state of mind.” Ann-Marie Beck is nervous to send her 9th-grade daughter to Herriman next year. She thinks the school isn’t doing enough given the situation. “Why do schools have twenty football coaches and only five counselors?” she exclaimed. “And those are also academic counselors. Kids need more access to mental health professionals. My daughter has four art classes. Why not a mental health class?” The school hasn’t been entirely lacking, however. They’ve brought in additionally counseling and a crisis team for days following the suicide. Jordan School District is also allowing (on a limited basis) free counseling sessions for students. "The administration is doing what they feel is best for the school,” says Joie Jarman, a 12th-grade student at Herriman. “They are following policy, and I believe they are doing what they feel is best for the school.” Herriman High administration has created a three-page suicide prevention plan that showcases the actions they have taken and plan to take. We have included a link to this document below. “Suicide has been a serious concern for our Herriman community this year,” says a Herriman school official. “With the loss of our students we understand the community has been saddened, angered, anxious, and confused and we feel the same way. Throughout the school year we've made suicide prevention our top priority by implementing events, programs, and trainings with the overarching message that we care about each of our students and we want to keep them safe.” Sandy Riesgraf, Jordan District spokesperson, says that "We ask everyone to remember, if you see something, say something. Please report issues of bullying or concerns about someone in crisis." The National Association of School Psychologists says that “Children and adolescents spend a substantial part of their day in school under the supervision of school personnel. Effective suicide and violence prevention is integrated with supportive mental health services, engages the entire school community, and is imbedded in a positive school climate through student behavioral expectations and a caring and trusting student/adult relationship. Therefore, it is crucial for all school staff members to be familiar with, and watchful for, risk factors and warning signs of suicidal behavior.” A study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows the rate of youth (ages 10 to 17) dying by suicide in Utah has increased an average of 22.8 percent each year from 2011 to 2015. Nationally, the rate increased an average of 6 percent over the same time period. It clear that Utah has a serious problem on its hands. What isn't clear is the solution. Herriman High Parents, students, or staff may call (801) 567-8560 during school hours to schedule an appointment for counseling/crisis intervention services. This will be offered until May 30th, 2018. National Suicide Prevention Hotline is 1-800-273-8255. View three-page suicide prevention document by Herriman Administration at www.goo.gl/dLwtHU.
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Russian Doping: A Reoccurring Theme3/3/2018 Destanie McCauley, Staff Writer
Russian athletes have a recurring theme of doping in Olympic Games. Even in the most recent Olympic games, having their whole team suspended and forced to compete under the name ‘Olympic Athletes from Russia’. In previous games, specifically the 2014 games, a handful of Olympic athletes were a part of a state run doping program led by Grigory Rodchenkov, the director of Russia’s doping program at the time. This ploy was in the works for many years to ensure they didn’t get caught. Rodchenkov developed a three drug cocktail of banned substances mixed with liquor and gave it to the russian athletes. This was one of the most successful doping plots in Olympic History. The Director and his colleagues got away with this scandal by switching dirty urine with clean urine collected months prior to the testing. They managed to break into seal proof bottles, replacing urine for testing the next day. Rodchenkov estimated that they replaced around 100 dirty samples. The IOC placed a ban on Russian athletes competing in the 2018 games after two competitors had failed doping tests. The first being Aleksandr Krushelnitckii, who was stripped of his bronze medal after accepting a suspension for failing his drug test. The russian curler claimed he must’ve had his drink spiked, denying taking the meldonium found in his test results. The second Russian athlete failed her doping test, was Nadezhda Sergeeva, testing positive for a banned heart medication. The Russian Bobsled Federation said that Sergeeva had passed a drug test just five days earlier. They also said they did not understand how the substance had shown up on her drug test. Because of Russia’s numerous amount of doping scandals, other athletes, U.S. included, have said they’re planning to protest the Sports’ World Championship final, which will be hosted in Tyumen, Russia in March. But, it was not just russian athletes who tested positive in the Games. Two other athletes failed drug tests. Ziga Jeglic, a hockey player, had tested positive for a banned asthma medicine that enhances airflow to the lungs. Japanese Speed Skater, Kei Saito, was sent home after testing positive for a diuretic and masking agent. It is unlikely that drugs are ever going to be fully eradicated from the Olympic world. Officials will continue to increase crackdowns on doping in the future.
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Students Take Stand Against Gun Violence2/21/2018 Max Gordon, Editor in Chief
Last week a shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla. left 17 students and class members dead and many more wounded. This event adds to an ever growing list of mass shootings that have occurred in the U.S. in the past decade. What makes this shooting different, however, is how the surviving students have reacted. The victims are calling on congress to act, holding rallies and town halls, and are organizing marches and walk out events. Across the country students have answered the call to action. In Utah a "March For Our Lives" has been organized for March 24 at the capital. Two separate dates for student walk outs have been announced, March 14th and April 20th, and schools across Utah have students pledging to participate. As of now, Herriman is not one of them. How congress and President Donald Trump choose to react to these protests remains to be seen, but Parkland has the potential to be the turning point in the battle for gun control. The Telegram will update students on any Herriman related protests being organized.
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The Rundown on Super Bowl 522/2/2018 Parker Service, Staff Writer
The Super Bowl is just around the corner. The 52nd Super Bowl will be between the New England Patriots, led by Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, and their NFC opponents: the Philadelphia Eagles, lead by Nick Foles and Doug Pederson. For those that are setting up for their parties, here are a few things to expect while you’re eating buffalo wings and watching football. The Halftime Show Fourteen years after the infamous wardrobe malfunction during Super Bowl XXXVIII’s Halftime Show, Justin Timberlake returns. In an interview with USA Today, the Philadelphian linebacker, Chris Long, said on the subject “I don’t know why they wouldn’t have them both back.” This is based on the hope that Janet Jackson, Timberlake’s partner fourteen years ago, may reunite this Sunday. Many players (on both teams) want Jackson to return on Sunday. Another Eagles linebacker, Kamu Grugler-Hill, says “That was the greatest [halftime show] ever, even though I was like in fourth grade. I think I would have a lot more appreciation for it now...that would be cool if they did both of them again, though. A little relapse? That would be really, really cool." A New England linebacker Trevor Reilly said “I’d love to see a wardrobe malfunction, isn’t that what all of America is thinking?" Whether Jackson returns or not, you can expect music ranging from any of Justin’s past works, including the 2016 Grammy Award winning song Can’t Stop The Feeling. But the songs you should definitely expect is from his upcoming fifth studio-album, Man of the Woods. Man of the Woods released this Friday, February 2nd, only two days before the Super Bowl. Chris Stapleton and Alicia Keys take guest spots on the album, so either one of these may make a guest performance during halftime. The Ads What is undoubtedly the highlights for many around the world, expensive super bowl commercials will be premiering, and many will remain embedded in the collective consciousness of the world. On Wednesday, Doritos released their ad early on Youtube. Doritos is one of the fan favorites every year and this year will likely not be an exception. It is a minute long ad, which costs upwards of nine million dollars. The commercial stars Game of Thrones’ Peter Dinklage and the actor Morgan Freeman. This ad is a lip-sync battle between the two stars, where Dinklage fights for Doritos Blaze, and Freeman for Mountain Dew Ice. It is an absurd ad that will definately be a big winner with fans. Other ads that have been released are funny ones from Groupon, and Amazon. Many stars appear in some of these: Danny DeVito appears in an M&M ad, Super Bowl champion Peyton Manning stars in a Universal Studios ad, Chris Pratt and Bill Hader will also appear in their own commercials as well. A cross-promotional ad for Lexus and Marvel’s newest movie, Black Panther, is sure to be sleek and cool. There is one notable exclusion from this list, and that is Bud Light. In recent weeks Bud Light has unveiled an incredibly popular and well-received campaign. They’ve revealed a new ad every week in a series set in a kingdom led by a Bud Light loving king. He and his subjects chant “Dilly Dilly,” which you may have heard yelled (annoyingly) around your campus. The ad campaign has an overall story, which makes it pretty unique. Bud Light has not released the finale to the Dilly Dilly storyline, opting instead to make the actual reveal during the Super Bowl. The Game This is an incredible matchup. The Eagles have been expected all year to make it here, and the Patriots are the returning champions from Super Bowl LI, last year. Tom Brady has recently been touted as what is possibly the greatest of all time. With that, you would think this match would be pretty one-sided towards the Patriots. But the Eagles are no pushovers, and seem to have an even better chance than the Falcons last year. The Eagles have one of, if not the best defense in the league, and if they can keep pressure on Brady, than they stand a really good chance. Most professional analysts seem to have the game ending within a field goal of the other team. They all seem to have the final scores in the twenty-to-twenty-five range. Though which team makes it out on top varies between these analysts, I do see a slight lean towards Philadelphia. But to the Pats fans out there, don’t get discouraged by this, because Brady is known for his second half miracles, that seemingly come out of nowhere, like in last year’s Super Bowl. And if you believe in magic, this might just confirm an Eagle victory. Because just like in biblical times, animals seem to have a sixth sense for this stuff. Walter the camel, Bubbles the elephant, and Carlos the hairless cat all predict that Philly will be going home with a victory, not to mention Amazon’s Alexa pulling for the birds as well. Everybody loves an underdog.
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January 18th, 2018 by Conor Spahr, News Editor Edited by Max Gordon, Editor-In-Chief In early November 2017, Mr. Ryan White, a history teacher at Herriman High, left his job under mysterious circumstances. After investigating for several months, The Herriman Telegraph can confirm that he was terminated and committed serious employee conduct violations. In interviews with school administrators, we were told that privacy laws protected any possible release of the reason for White’s firing. One vice principal cited FERPA laws, which apply only to student information, and have absolutely no validity in the release of teacher affairs. Per multiple Student Body Officers, who we are keeping anonymous at their request: An experienced teacher at Herriman High School told student body officers that “Mr. White was fired for texting students inappropriate things." The source specifically mentioned that White was sending highly inappropriate messages to a female student. We interviewed this experienced teacher and they denied knowing or telling anyone about Mr. White’s termination. Joie Jarman, a student at Herriman, said that in Jr. High, White would often talk about “how he is always there for his students, and that they can talk to him about anything." Contacting Jordan District The Telegraph contacted Jordan School District for a GRAMA (Government Records Access Management Act) request for records pertaining to Mr. White and his termination. They are required to respond in ten days, and on the 10th day, their lawyers contacted us stating that they would be (legally) extending the request another week. We received a two-page response detailing specific law codes for reasons they were denying most of our request. They stated that the release of certain records, like the reason for White’s termination, could interfere with an ongoing disciplinary investigation or legal proceedings, and therefore were legally being withheld from public release. Several documents were, however, released. Among them was a document verifying the hiring and termination dates of Ryan White. He was officially terminated On November 27th, 2017, several weeks after actually leaving his teaching position. A verification document of his prior employer, Providence Hall, showed in scribbled handwriting that Jordan School District knew Mr. White was fired from Providence. See image below. History at Providence Hall We interviewed several Students at Herriman High who alleged that White may have been fired from Providence Hall, his previous employer, for similar misconduct reasons. An interview with a Senior School Official from Providence, who was not around at the time of White’s firing, indicated the same suspicion. The Telegraph could not totally confirm his reason for termination at Providence Hall. However, we made a GRAMA request to Providence Hall as well. The documents they released showed he was fired, and while not explicitly stating the reason, it included interesting highlights on pages PH-0014 to PH-0020 of his Agreements and Acknowledgements Disclosure, a document outlining employee conduct policies. The highlighted sections appeared to be terms he violated, essentially the reasons he was fired. One highlighted section states, “I understand that I must schedule one-on-one counseling sessions or meetings with minors at times and locations that promote accountability, in an open room setting without closed doors, and only if readily observable by others who may be in the room or hallway, and meet accepted standards of propriety.” Another said essentially the same thing, but instead of pertaining to minors, it pertained to“extra-curricular activities, school programs, or special instructions sessions." Providence Hall did not respond to a request for comment on the highlights. Herriman High’s Hiring Failure A Senior School Official from Providence Hall said Herriman High had never contacted the school for a reference on any of their teachers during his employment there. We asked Herriman Vice Principal Hudnall about the hiring process. He stated that obtaining a reference from prior employers is standard. Hudnall also said that a vice principal would normally be responsible to do that, and that they would ask questions like “Are they available for rehire at your district?” or “Did they have any disciplinary actions taken against them?” Coincidentally, the Senior School Official from Providence Hall said they would tell Herriman why a teacher was fired if asked. We asked Principal Birch if a reference was ever done on Mr. White. He didn’t give a definitive answer, but said that “We did our due diligence." When asked why White was fired, he said that there are privacy laws that prevent the school from releasing that information. He also said, “We just don’t talk about those things." Mr. Birch went on to say that “Out of the nine teachers we’ve let go [at herriman], I still like all of them." The Consensus We interviewed some teachers at Herriman to get their take on the situation. Many said that administration had stepped up the rules on teacher-student contact. The ways that teachers should contact students was also addressed at staff meetings, per multiple teacher sources. It was specifically mentioned at a staff meeting that texting students one-on-one was not allowed or appropriate. During the second quarter of the school year, after White was fired, administrators required all group chats and emails to also include a Vice Principal in the conversation. This was deemed unrealistic, however, and is no longer required. This incident has some parents and students wondering how safe or competent their teachers are, and how low schools will stoop during the ongoing teacher shortage in Utah. Note to the reader: We have attempted to present all the facts in an unbiased way in an attempt for you to form your own opinion. You can read all the GRAMA released documents online at the case-sensitive link www.bit.ly/Telegram-Files. Editor's note: Multiple local news networks, including KUTV, FOX 13, ABC 4, and KSL have all covered this story and discovered their own sources, including an ongoing police investigation and an ongoing investigation by the Utah State Board of Education. This article was not prematurely released and is the result of months of thorough investigation into the matter. It has been edited by multiple student journalists and was reviewed by several other independent attorneys. Legal counsel from the SPLC was also involved in the investigative process. *Correction: A previous version of this story stated White left under mysterious circumstances on November 27, 2017. However, that is his official termination date. He actually stopped teaching several weeks before that.
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Conor Spahr, News Editor January 20th, 2018 Updated: 10:00 PM, January 25th, 2018 HERRIMAN -- Residents were told to stay indoors as a manhunt by members of local police and SWAT teams ensues early Saturday morning. The shelter in place order has been lifted in both Herriman and Riverton. The suspect, identified by police as 33 year old Justin Gary Llewelyn of Riverton, was apparently walking down the street when an officer approached him. Llewelyn fired shots at the officer, missing. Then he encountered another officer who also exchanged gunfire, with no one being hit. According to Police, Llewelyn then broke into a house and shot the homeowner, who was said to be in critical condition, but his status has since been updated to "good". The suspect stole a car from the residence, which he crashed. The car was found near Blackridge Reservoir. Police and SWAT teams searched the streets in Herriman and Riverton all day, but the suspect still remains at large. Police say the suspect has a history of run-ins with law, including a stabbing in 2012. After five days on the run, the suspect has finally been apprehended. "Got a visual confirmation of our suspect Justin Llewelyn at a park in Provo," said Unified Police Lieutenant Brian Lohrke. The suspect then took off in a blue truck, as reported by Fox 13. Police performed a pit maneuver to end a high speed chase in Spanish Fork. Sheriff Rivera said "I'm just happy the he's off the street."
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Conor Spahr, News Editor
Members of The Telegraph, Herriman High's school newspaper, broke the story of an ex-teacher at Herriman who is under investigation for misconduct. The story has since been featured on multiple news networks, including KUTV, and was posted by The Telegraph on their website Yesterday, January 18th. Just as the story was gaining momentum and bringing views to the reader-starved Telegraph, in the dead of morning, on January 19th, Herriman Administrators deleted the story and took the website offline. No explanation was given to students, nor was a timeline of how long this ban would take effect. In addition to removing the website, the school put a hold on all of The Telegraph's social media accounts so that no posts can be made. Student journalists were told all posts to social media and the website would have to approved by a vice principal in the future. |