Four Pikeville High School students recently had their writings published in an anthology. We All Live Downstream: Writings about Mountaintop Removal features the work of Jack Carter, Catherine Dawahare, Sarah Francis, and Kathleen Smith, all Juniors at PHS.

MotesBooks, a publisher located in Louisville, put out a call for submissions for the anthology on mountaintop removal last fall. This call for submissions was concurrent with a mountaintop removal unit in the sophomore honors English class. Students in this class read non-fiction informational texts distributed by coal companies that highlighted the positive effects of this method of mining; students also read informational texts from environmental groups and literature from those speaking out against mountaintop removal. Bill Caylor, president of the Kentucky Coal Association, and Silas House, anti-mountaintop removal activist and author of Clay’s Quilt, A Parchment of Leaves, and Something’s Rising, spoke to students, each voicing his argument for or against mountaintop removal. At the close of the unit, students responded to mountaintop removal through writing short stories, poetry, letters, and songs.

Tiffany Williams, sophomore English teacher at Pikeville Independent, said, “I am so proud of all my students who participated in this unit. Mountaintop Removal is a hotly-debated issue. These kids considered both sides and debated their opinions with informed equanimity. Their writings in response to this unit were well-developed and impassioned. I think the inclusion of our students in We All Live Downstream attests to this.” The anthology, published in June 2009, is available online from Amazon and Barnes and Noble.