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NINA honors
high-school journalists
A record six student journalists were honored this spring in NINA’s annual scholarship competition for graduating high-school seniors.
Judges selected three winners and three honorable mentions from among 35 applicants. A total of $1,750 was awarded, including $1,200 from NINA; $300 from the Daily Herald; $200 from the NewsTribune of LaSalle-Peru; and $50 from the Ottawa Daily Times.
“This was truly an outstanding group of student journalists and it was very difficult to select the winners—as evidenced by our record number of honorable-mention winners,” said the Ledger-Sentinel’s John Etheredge, NINA’s scholarship coordinator. “These students represent the future of journalism and we’re pleased to help them continue their educations at the college level.”
Honorees are:
NINA judges selected Wyckoff based on her work as editor of the Elk Grove High School student newspaper, The Guardian, as well as her role as a student columnist for the Daily Herald.
First place: Whitney Wyckoff, Elk Grove High School, $600 from NINA and $300 from the Daily Herald.
Judges were especially impressed with the range and professional quality of Wyckoff’s news stories. In her biographical essay, Wyckoff wrote, “One of the most important things I learned at the Daily Herald was that I don’t have to write about politics to make a difference. Anytime I write a story, I can change the world. That’s why I want to be a journalist.”Mary Larson, an English teacher at Elk Grove High School and adviser to The Guardian, said Wyckoff stands out among the thousands of students she has taught over the past 18 years.
In a letter of recommendation, Larson wrote, “She writes perceptive, thorough, and compassionate stories for Elk Grove’s award-winning student newspaper. Her column entertains, challenges and motivates. She is a persistent researcher and has written many outstanding stories with depth and understanding.”Wyckoff will attend the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign this fall, where she plans to major in journalism. She has been named a chancellor’s scholar as one of the top 125 incoming freshmen.
Second place: Kendra Garstka, Lyons Township High School, $400 from NINA. Judges noted Garstka’s work for the Lion, the Lyons Township High School student newspaper. She served as assistant copy editor her junior year and has been news editor this year. During her junior year, she took a quick interest in her copy editing duties, reading “The Elements of Style” in her spare time.
Judges were impressed with Garstka’s eagerness to research and write detailed stories on complex issues such as the Patriot Act and a sexual assault case.
Jason Scales, adviser to the Lion, recommended Garstka for a scholarship due to her “dedication to journalism, strong work ethic, high academic achievement, maturity and well-developed leadership skills.”
She plans to continue her journalism education at either the University of Missouri at Columbia or American University in Washington, D.C.
Third place: Yuri Ozeki, LaSalle Peru Township High School, $200 from NINA and $200 from the NewsTribune of LaSalle Peru. NINA judges were impressed with Ozeki’s academic achievements – she ranks No. 1 in her class – and the professional quality of her feature writing for the school’s newspaper, The Teen Trib, and for the “Word,” published in the NewsTribune.
In a letter of recommendation, Michele Honecker-Ummel, instructor and division chair of English at LaSalle Peru High, noted that Ozeki is “satisfied with nothing less than her best work” who also “seems to gain momentum” when her writing is critiqued.
“Yuri’s passion for and natural talent with language, along with her willingness to sculpt her art to perfection, will certainly bode well for her future endeavors and for those who come in contact with her and her work,” Honecker-Ummel added.
Ozeki plans to study journalism at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign this fall.
Honorable mentions:
area. The Daily Times awarded Stroebel $50 for being an honorable-mention winner.
Julie Stroebel, Seneca High School. Stroebel has been a writer for the Ottawa Daily Times’ Teen Page. She also developed a semi-weekly series called Career Spotlight in which she profiles young adults throughout the Ottawa
- Sara Koci, Hinsdale Central High School. Koci has been co-editor-in-chief of her student newspaper, The Devil’s Advocate. The paper has a staff of over 70 students. Did not indicate a college, but her dream is to write a column for Newsweek or some other news magazine.
- Abby Collard, Rolling Meadows High School. Collard has been co-editor-in-chief of the student newspaper at Rolling Meadow High School. She plans to attend the University of Missouri at Columbia this fall.
In selecting high school journalists for scholarship awards each spring, NINA judges seek applicants who have “demonstrated the standards of honesty, integrity, attention to detail, hard work, creativity and an understanding and commitment to quality community journalism.”
Since the program started eight years ago, NINA and local papers have given out $8,650 in scholarships to graduating high school seniors who have expressed an interest in continuing their journalism education at the high school level. NINA has received 280 scholarship applications over those eight years.
The scholarship committee is grateful to the NINA Board for its continued support of this program and the contributions from the Daily Herald, NewsTribune of LaSalle Peru, and the Ottawa Daily Times.
Photos of Sara Koci and Abby Collard were unavailable.
