Alyssa Shepherd Moore (pronounced ah-LEE-SUH) was hired at Hawkins High School in 2014,  two years after the school opened.  She has been in room 228 ever since.  As a graduate of her dream school, USC, she was delighted to work at the school where she had served as a volunteer giving SAT Prep classes to rising seniors through the Al Wooten Jr. Heritage Center on Western. What qualifies Ms. Moore to teach journalism? Well, Ms. Moore is a published freelance writer who has written for the R&B Report Magazine, the BRE Report, and several other entertainment magazines.  She is also a member of JEA, NABJ, and ACES: The Society for Editing. And, in June 2025 she graduated from UCLA with a certificate in Journalism. In 2024, after working tirelessly over spring break and several sleepless nights during the week and weekends, she along with Ms. Rivera, yearbook teacher,  chaperoned 20+ Hawkins students to their first-ever JEA NSPA National High School Journalism Conference in Kansas City, Missouri.  While in Kansas, she lobbied to have Hawkins HS join the Quill and Scroll International Honor Society for High School Journalists. On May 7, 2024, Hawkins became a member and inducted 25 initial members into the honor society. [caption id="attachment_2307" align="alignleft" width="600"] Hawkins Journalism class, September 2017 with Kyle Finck of the LA Times High School Insider[/caption] With assistance from ETA, which included funding, mentorships, professional learning communities and, networking opportunities, the journalism program has grown from 17 students in 2017 to over 100 students in 2025-2026.