Three journalism students qualified for the IHSA State Series, and the team brought home a trophy for overall excellence at NISPA, continuing their long-standing tradition of success in competitive journalism. From copy editing to newspaper production, students earned their spots at state through months of preparation and strong performances at sectionals.
For journalism teacher Renee Nieckula, qualifying for state is both an expectation and a reflection of the effort students put into the program throughout the year.
“I always like to see the paper place in the NISPA competition because that’s a validation of work done in class,” Nieckula said. “I also expect that there will be state qualifiers in IHSA every year. In my 20-plus years of advising, there has only been one year where we have not qualified.”
That consistency has helped establish the journalism programs as one of the school’s strongest academic teams. Students compete in events that test real-world journalism skills such as AP style, headline writing, editing, interviewing, and design under strict time limits.
“For the week before, I was looking up AP-style rules and guides, and the morning before, I was looking at New York Times copy edit quizzes,” senior Sara Szostak, two-time state qualifier, said.
Preparation like this helps students feel more confident before competition day. Even with strong opponents from other schools, students say the best strategy is focusing on their own performance rather than the pressure around them.
“Mostly when I’m competing, I try not to think of the competition. I just try to have fun. When I don’t have pressure, I notice I perform better,” Szostak said.
While the IHSA competitions are performed live in timed events, the NISPA competition judges the published work of the staff.
“For this particular competition, since it’s just looking over what I put in the newspaper, I just looked at what I did and made sure it got out there. I didn’t really look at the competition til the day of,” senior Lee Hoffee, editor-in-chief, said.
Qualifying for state can also be a meaningful personal milestone for students, especially those who have worked to improve from previous years.
“It felt pretty good. I wasn’t here when they announced it, I was told after school. It was awesome since I’m on the math team and the scholastic bowl, but journalism is the one that means the most to me,” senior Johnny Van Ham, news editor, said. “I never thought I’d be able to make it to state since I didn’t perform very well last year, so finding out I made it was pretty cool.”
Students also say winning awards strengthens the bond within the class. Sharing the experience of waiting for results and celebrating awards creates excitement and brings everyone closer together.
“When we’re actually there, it is exciting, especially waiting to hear about anything and seeing everybody go up for awards,” Hoffee said.
As students advance to the state level, the journalism class continues to prove that strong writing, careful editing, and teamwork lead to success. For many, qualifying for state is not just an achievement; it is proof that the work they do in class matters far beyond the classroom.
