The editor-in-chief of the awarding-winning Omega newspaper of Downers Grove North High School is our choice for top high school journalist in Illinois. Check inside for more about Abbe and runner-up, Marissa Martinez!
By Amanda Bright, IJEA Co-Secretary and Region 5 Board Member
• February 27, 2017
Did that just say "Cheat"? Is that legal if I'm a teacher and adviser? Turns out, it is — especially if it's rewarding the most driven and passionate students in your newsroom with the honor of being on the IJEA All-State Journalism Team for 2017.
Mike Doyle, CJE, Former IJEA Board Member
• February 21, 2017
The IJEA's annual James A. Tidwell Award recognizes our state's top journalism educators. With the March 1 deadline for 2017 nominations quickly approaching, we asked a recent Tidwell honoree, Mike Doyle, to discuss what winning the award has meant to him. "It means that every day I know I made a difference in the lives of so many students and that I was able to teach the values of fairness, ethics and integrity to so many of them," he writes.
Although we love to honor student journalists, we also strive to recognize their elders — the teachers, advisers, administrators and friends who make outstanding scholastic journalism possible with their guidance and support. Do you know of deserving candidates? Submit your nominations — or your own applications — today!
Never before have the media and the First Amendment come under such ridicule and hatred by a sitting president. During Scholastic Journalism Week — Feb. 19 to 25 — scholastic media outlets should encourage their audiences to become civically engaged and contact lawmakers on both sides of the aisle to let them know that an assault on the First Amendment is not only an attack on professional journalists but on the nation’s students as well.
Alexandria Johnson, 2011 Illinois Journalist of the Year
• February 13, 2017
As the Feb. 15 deadline nears for entering the 2017 Illinois Journalist of the Year contest, former IJOY Alexandria Johnson offers her reflections on what scholastic journalism has meant to her. Alexandria says she's still using the lessons she learned from high school journalism to help others.
Who will succeed Libertyville's Hannah Boufford as Illinois Journalist of the Year? JEA State Director Brenda Field has some advice for those seniors who plan to compete for the honor: Let your passion shine through!
The Journalism Education Association has selected 10 scholastic media advisers to receive its 2017 Rising Star Award, and the winners include IJEA board member Katie Comeford, yearbook and digital news media adviser at Phoenix Military Academy in Chicago. Congratulations, Katie!
Cora Weisenberger, IWPA High School Contest Chair
• January 27, 2017
The IWPA High School Communications Contest showcases the excellent work of Illinois students, with the winners in each category automatically advancing to the national competition. The deadline for entries is Feb. 21.
The dynamic teacher and adviser who led award-winning journalism programs and inspired fellow educators died Jan. 7. For those who didn't get a chance to know Laurie, the video of her IJEA Educator of the Year acceptance speech (check inside) will give you a sense of both her playfulness and dedication.
By Amanda Bright, IJEA Co-Secretary and Region 5 Board Member
• January 5, 2017
Whether it was copy writing, sports coverage, photography, graphics, layout and design, divider pages, theme development or overall coverage of the 2015-16 school year, Illinois high school journalists shined in IJEA's 2016 Yearbook Contest. Check out the complete results inside.
As 2017 arrives, make a resolution to recognize that scholastic press rights are for every scholastic journalist and journalism educator in Illinois — and together we can make a difference!
