Storytelling Through Media: Engaging Bellingham Young Adults in Media Literacy

The Bellingham Youth Media Project (BYMP) is an innovative educational outreach organization aimed at encouraging middle and high school students to use digital media to tell their stories. Media educators Lauren McClanahan (a professor in the Secondary Education Department at Western Washington University) and Lucas Holtgeerts work closely with teachers to help create curricula that infuses technology in creative and meaningful ways. 

McClanahan’s interest in photography and storytelling began at an early age, as she learned the media business from her father, who worked at a local television station in Columbus, Ohio. She has long been interested in exploring what media can do and its impact on people and society.