•  

    2023-2024

    OHS JOURNALISM PROGRAM APPLICATION

    Journalism 
    Our SD#308 Journalism Program includes elective courses that require an application for enrollment.  These courses include Digital Journalism 1, Digital Journalism 2, Yearbook Journalism 1, and Yearbook Journalism 2.
     

    Please click on the following link to submit an online application for a 2023-2024 journalism course:  SD#308 Journalism Program Application.  This application is a universal application, meaning that a student may apply for any of the journalism courses through this one application.  To submit this application, students should be prepared to: 

     

    - access the link through SD#308 Gmail address

    - provide interests and strengths in journalism

    - submit the name of an OHS English teacher who may serve as a reference

     
    Should you have questions about this application or course selection, please contact your guidance counselor or the English Department Chair, Dr. Amy Howerton.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

     

     

    For information about the

    OHS Journalism Honor Society,

    Quill & Scroll,

    please see the linked

    webpage or from

    the lefthand navigation bar.

  •  

     

    OHS' Journalism Program AWARDS

    Spring 2023:

    Oswego High School's student news publication 42Fifty earned a Gold Award and multiple individual awards from the Northern Scholastic Press Association for its coverage this year! Led by English teacher and adviser Sarah Hands, this publication has earned 214/230 points on their overall critique, the highest score in the history of the publication.   In addition to the overall Gold Award received by the publication staff as a whole, OHS students Brady Monahan, Austin Lamb, David Diaz, Jaylene Garcia, Trinity Heard, Liliana Murillo, Ava Szekely, and Natalie Raabe all received individual awards for their excellence in scholastic journalism. 
     
    The individual awards with links are as follows: 
     
    While the entire 30-student staff is responsible for the publication's overall award, the leaders are this year's Editors-in-Chief Brady Monahan and Kira Farooqui, and Managing Editors Abraham Gallegos and Trinity Heard.   Congratulations to the 42Fifty staff!
     

     

    Fall 2022:

     
    Please join me in congratulating English teacher and 42Fifty journalism adviser Sarah Hands for earning Certified Journalism Educator status from the Journalism Education Association (JEA)!  Sarah earned this professional title at the November JEA convention in St. Louis, MO, while attending with students and OHS yearbook adviser Ewa Tulak.
     
    To earn this title, Sarah had to demonstrate her knowledge of journalism and media advising via a rigorous test.  Her knowledge of journalism education and advising are emphasized in this designation, proving her status as highly qualified as a journalism instructor and adviser.
     
     
     
    The Reflector yearbook adviser Ewa Tulak, 42Fifty news publication adviser Sarah Hands and 12 students attended the Journalism Education Association (JEA) convention in St. Louis, MO in mid-November.  Students attended workshops and leadership programs to enhance each publication. The Reflector team obtained a critique of the 2023-in-progress publication to use as a guide in the remainder of the book's publication. Adviser Hands also competed in an adviser test for additional credentials through JEA. 

     

    Spring 2022:

    Ewa Tulak was awarded the "Yearbook Warrior" award from Walsworth Publishing Company this spring for overcoming challenges in taking over as the OHS Yearbook Adviser.  Thank you, Ms. Tulak, for your dedication and talents to help make the 2022 OHS yearbook come together smoothly after a bumpy start.  You are deservedly recognized for your positivity and persistence!
     
    Sarah Hands and many 42Fifty student journalists have just earned the highest recognition by the Northern Illinois Scholastic Press Association (NISPA): THE GOLDEN EAGLE!
    This award has not been earned by our publication since 2019; we are so proud of adviser Sarah Hands and her student journalists for the hard work and journalism excellence represented by this award!  Below, please see other individual and team awards from NISPA:
    • 42Fifty Web Publication - Silver Certificate for overall excellence as a web-based publication.
    • 42Fifty 2021-2022 Editorial Staff - Blue Ribbon for Team In-Depth ("Challenges of returning to in-person learning" - 5 news articles and 1 editorial)
    • Austin Lamb, Miranda Mahoney, Raelyn Alvarez, Brady Monahan - Blue Ribbon for Breaking News ("SD308 enforces mask mandate amid statewide lawsuit controversy")
    • Miranda Mahoney - Honorable Mention for Individual In-Depth ("Administration, teachers struggling to enforce COVID-19 protocols in the cafeteria"); Honorable Mention for Sports Writing ("Conference Champs: JV soccer celebrates a winning season")
    • Kira Farooqui - Honorable Mention for Photography ("Panthers reclaim their Crosstown Championship title after a crushing loss to the Wolves")
    • Jasper Palleson - Honorable Mention for Graphics ("Mental health issues in athletes")
    • Trinity Heard - Honorable Mention for Features ("Introducing the Muslim Student Association at OHS")

     

    Summer 2021:

    42Fifty earned a Silver certificate and multiple invidual awards from the Northern Illinois Scholastic Press Association for coverage between Februrary 2020 and February 2021.  This was a very difficult year for everyone, and figuring out how to collaborate, conduct interviews, and report on rapidly changing news proved to be especially challenging.  However, the 42Fifty student staff and adviser Sarah Hands rose to the occasion and exceeded expectations.  Congratulations!  Below are individual student awards:

    • Alex Mielcarz - 1st in Sports Writing for "Girls BB: OH takes rubber math over OE, moves on to regional final"
    • Alex Mielcarz - 1st in Column Writing for "The SPC playoff experiment of 2021 show stay long afrer COVID"
    • Tori Trevino - Honorable Mention in Review Writing for "'The Haunting of Bly Manor' is a must-watch this spooky season"
    • Caylen Palleson - Honorable Mention in Cartooning for "As the district plans to reopen..."
    • Calyen Palleson - Honorable Mention in Graphics for "SAD: The flight against yourself"
    • 42Fifty Staff - Honorable Mention in Team In-Depth for "Spring 2020 OVID-19 Coverage"
    • Evan Keck - Honorable Mention in News Writing for "OHS switches to distance learning afer school closure"
    • 42Fifty Editorial Staff - Honorable Mention in Editorial Writing for "Remote Learning for All: Where 308 should start 2020-2021"

     

    Spring 2021:

     OHS hosted the first-ever all-virtual SPC Journalism Competition February 2021. After tallying up the totals, Oswego's team (composed of editors from both 42Fifty and The Reflector) came in second place! Students won the following individual awards: 

    • Alex Mielcarz - 1st in Copy Editing, 1st in Sports Writing
    • Jamani Reed - 3rd in Copy Editing, 3rd in Sports Writing, 3rd in Editorial Writing
    • Thiago Reinert - 5th in Copy Editing, 3rd in Yearbook Copy Writing, 1st in Yearbook Caption Writing
    • Lizzy Sorensen - 1st in News Writing, 4th in Sports Writing
    • Annabelle Rivera - 4th in News Writing, 4th in Feature Writing
    • Sarah Petrauskas - 3rd in Yearbook Caption Writing
     
    In addition to the SPC awards, 42Fifty received a First In Class honor rating with two marks of distinction from the National Scholastic Press Association.
     

    Winter 2021:

    Congratulations to the 2020 Reflector Yearbook staff as they have won a national award for the 2020 book, "The Golden Years!"

    Our talented student staff, advised by Saima Iqbal and Erica Aceret, earned the "Second Place Yearbook 2020" award from the American Scholastic Press Association!  The book completed publication after the March 2020 global pandemic shut down in-person learning.  The accomplishments of this staff is to be recognized for their diligence in copleting the creation and publication of this book amid such challenging circumstances.  Congratulations on a job well done!

     

    Spring 2020:

    Join the English Department in congratulating the 42Fifty student journalists and adviser Sarah Hands as they have won multiple awards through the Northern Illinois Scholastic Press Association (NISPA)! Please see the names and awards earned below so we can celebrate this success with the students. Congratulations to Ms. Hands and her journalists!

    Individual Awards

    Division 1 Feature Writing - Honorable Mention:  David Brant, “‘I am now myself:’ Coming out as bisexual in Oswego” 
    Division 3 Column Writing - Blue Ribbon: Ben Larson, “The need for tighter security at OHS”
    Division 1 Sports Writing - Honorable Mention: Alex Mielcarz, “Parker leads Panthers to blowout win over Crosstown rival OE”

    Overall Awards
    Gold Certificate for Web Publication; this is the highest honor Web Publications may earn (there are three possible designations - Bronze, Silver, or Gold)
    Golden Eagle for Web Publication; the Golden Eagle is the highest honor awarded to a publication for overall excellence; it is awarded to only 6 publications (out of 25 entries this year).