Illinois JEA

UPDATE: Our 2024 Yearbook Contest deadline has passed. Good luck to your students!

Dave Porreca, CJE, IJEA Board Member • May 27, 2024

We want recognize the amazing work your students have done documenting the 2023-24 school year! Our 2024 Yearbook Contest is now open and will accept submissions through Oct. 15. Please note that this deadline is a month earlier than usual. By using this earlier deadline, we hope to have the results back to you by Thanksgiving!

Congratulations to our 2024 Newspaper & Digital News winners!

Dave Porreca, CJE, IJEA Newspaper Contest Coordinator • April 28, 2024

Congratulations to all of our participating advisers and students! This year's competition received more than 1,000 entries from a total of 30 schools. The quality of entries was outstanding! Best of luck to everyone as you wrap up the school year. You make us proud to be associated with Illinois scholastic journalism!

Congratulations to our 2023 Newspaper & Digital News winners!

Dave Porreca, CJE, IJEA Newspaper Contest Coordinator • May 14, 2023

Illinois high school journalists truly rose to the occasion during the 12 months covered by the 2023 IJEA Newspaper & Digital News Media Contest to document the post-pandemic return to in-person learning and extracurriculars throughout the state. Once again, these students made us proud to be associated with Illinois scholastic journalism!

Our 2023 Newspaper & Digital News Media Contest is open for entries!

Dave Porreca, CJE, IJEA Newspaper Contest Coordinator • February 15, 2023

[MARCH 15 UPDATE: The 2023 contest is now closed for entries.] We have continued to partner with BetterBNC to provide a smooth and efficient platform for submitting entries in the IJEA Newspaper & Digital News Media Contest. Our 2023 platform is now up and running! The entry deadline is Wednesday, March 15. We look forward to recognizing the great work of your students. Good luck to all!

Calling all 2021-22 yearbooks! The 2022 IJEA Yearbook Contest is now open for entries through Nov. 15

Dave Porreca, CJE, IJEA Board Member • June 22, 2022

[NOV. 15 UPDATE: The 2022 contest is now closed for entries.] And we have a new contest address! Due to the retirement of longtime contest coordinator Dr. Sally Renaud, EIU will no longer be our yearbook home. Instead, the new mail-in destination for participating yearbooks will be Regina Dominican High School in Wilmette. The postmark deadline is Nov. 15, 2022. Good luck to all!

Congratulations to our 2022 Newspaper & Digital News winners!

Dave Porreca, CJE, Illinois JEA Board Member • May 10, 2022

With a pandemic affecting nearly every aspect of their lives, Illinois high school journalists truly rose to the occasion during the 12 months covered by our 2022 competition. Overcoming one challenge after another, these students made us proud to be associated with Illinois scholastic journalism!

Our 2022 Newspaper & Digital News Media Contest is open for entries!

Dave Porreca, CJE, IJEA Newspaper Contest Coordinator • February 24, 2022

We have joined with BetterBNC to provide a new and more efficient platform for submitting contest entries. The new platform for the IJEA Newspaper & Digital News Media Contest is now up and running! The entry deadline is Friday, March 25. Good luck to all!

Changes on the way for IJEA Newspaper & Digital News Contest

Dave Porreca, CJE, IJEA Newspaper Contest Coordinator • December 19, 2021

Although many things about our annual newspaper competition will remain the same, we will be partnering with BetterBNC to provide a new and more efficient platform for submitting entries. Check inside for more info. (UPDATE: The new contest platform is up and running! Check inside for the link. Thank you, IJEA members!)

IJEA names write-off winners

November 1, 2021

Although IJEA’s fall conference was canceled this year, a free virtual version of our popular write-off contest was held in late October — and the results are in. Congratulations to our winners in news writing, feature writing and editorial writing!

Congratulations to our 2021 All-State Journalism Team!

Dave Porreca, CJE and Linda Jones, IJEA Executive Director • June 25, 2021

The IJEA is proud to announce the members of the 2021 All-State Journalism Team. The 11 students selected for this year's honor were nominated by their advisers in recognition of the indispensable contributions they made to their publications during 2020-21. Congratulations to these MVPs who rose to the occasion in this most challenging of years!

Congratulations to our 2021 Newspaper & Digital News winners!

Dave Porreca, CJE, Illinois JEA Board Member • June 21, 2021

From the initial lockdown to the arrival of multiple vaccines, Illinois high school journalists saw it all during the 12 months covered by our 2021 competition. Facing one challenge after another, IJEA student journalists and their advisers truly rose to the occasion! Check inside for links to the winning entries.

Downers Grove North student named 2021 Illinois Journalist of the Year

John J. Gonczy, CJE, IJEA President • March 1, 2021

Sam Bull, a senior at Downers Grove North H.S., has been named the 2021 Illinois Journalist of the Year. He is IJEA’s 32nd Journalist of the Year, and he will now compete for national honors against the top high school journalists from other states. Congratulations to Sam and his adviser, Elizabeth Levin!