Most people who attend AHS know of Allison Berryhill and her creativity in her classroom. She allows her students to feel more open toward their ideas and allows her journalists to put their creativity into painting a ceiling tile. 

Berryhill has been a journalism teacher at AHS for over 14 years, and said she took over after the previous journalism teacher, Heather Mckay, became the principal. Berryhill said, “I went to the journalism department at Pella High School where the teacher, Anne Visser, had the painted ceiling tiles in her classroom. I really liked the idea of the tiles and that the students could express themselves,” Berryhill said.

AHS junior Emma Winford has been in journalism for two years.“I like the idea behind it. It gives the room creativity, and makes the classroom less boring,” Winford said. In her first year in journalism, she often found herself looking at the tiles. “When I was a freshman, and I was in Berryhill’s reading class, I was excited to join journalism and make my own tile.” Winford said, “I thought since I liked flowers I could do that with my name and the year I graduate.”

AHS senior Alyssa Neal has been a journalist at AHS for three years. Neal said, “I think it’s cool to see the old tiles from way back when they started everything.” It takes patience and time to get the tiles done and it took Neal about a week to complete hers. “I stayed after school with my friends to paint it,” Neal said. Neal intended on using a cross somewhere in her tile. “I picked out a color, and put my name on it and I had various people help me decide what else to put on it.” Neal enjoys looking at them because she’s never seen a teacher do ceiling tiles before. Neal said, “I love looking at all the new journalists’ tiles, adding to it every year adds something new.”

As for the tiles and the time it takes to get them painted and put into place. Berryhill said she would like to give a thank you to the janitors who use their time and days to help clean up all the messes these ceiling tiles make. “It makes a lot of mess to put them all together and I appreciate the janitors’ time and effort in helping clean up,” Berryhill said.

Video of 2021 journalists’ ceiling tiles available here.