Walnut Springs eighth-grader recognized for catching error in national magazine


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As students in Jill Shaffer’s class at Walnut Springs Middle School were reading the November issue of Scholastic Magazine, eighth-grader Jenna caught an error in an article featuring Grumpy Cat, a cat that achieved internet fame for its “grumpy” facial appearance.

Jenna noticed the story misidentified Grumpy Cat as a male and she and Shaffer emailed the magazine to notify them of their mistake. The corporate office quickly responded, noting that articles undergo a rigorous reporting and fact-checking process and they were grateful for the opportunity to correct the mistake. 

As a result, the magazine made the following correction: “A previous version of this article wrongly identified Grumpy Cat as a he. Grumpy Cat is actually a female. Special thanks to Jenna in Mrs. Shaffer’s class at Walnut Springs Middle School in Westerville, Ohio for bringing this to our attention.”