Best Serious Commentary (Enrollment Division 3)Back
Place Name: First Place Contestant Name: McHenry High School Entry Title: Opinion | Tragedy, not trend Entry Credit: Gabe Santos Judge Comment: Excellent explanation of a concept that many people may not be familiar with, at least by name — performative activism. Quotes, supporting material and excellent organization keep readers engaged. Tone is conversational yet serious.
Place Name: Second Place Contestant Name: West Chicago High School Entry Title: [OPINION] Time flies, literature dies Entry Credit: Gabriella Castro Judge Comment: This piece does a great job of presenting potential solutions as well as the problems — it's not just a complaint screed. Great transitions, good supporting quotes. Could have loosened up the language to be more conversational; the lead alone contains at least half a dozen snooze-inducing words.
Place Name: Third Place Contestant Name: Prospect High School Entry Title: Car dependency drives us to disaster Entry Credit: Sage Gilliland Judge Comment: Despite the near-flippant and snarky style, this still works as an engaging take on a serious problem. The storytelling lead points the column in a good direction, but it needed some details and numbers off of which to bounce the snark. To support "sickeningly wide" and "pathetic afterthought," do some research on infrastructure to put those opinions into sharper focus.
