Joliet West Sweeps Competition At 2021 Journalism Championship

JOLIET, IL — Late last month, 11 Joliet West Tigers brought home 14 awards at the virtual 2021 SPC Journalism Championship. All told, West's student journalists placed in 12 of 16 categories.

Seniors Kailey Staniszewski and Trevor Gould placed first in video news, the school said in a news release.

“It was nice to finally compete after not having sectional or state competitions last year," Staniszewski said in a statement. "As a senior I’ve been lucky enough to enjoy all the experiences this amazing program has offered, and I hope to win state again this year with my partner Trevor Gould in Video News. Competing virtually wasn’t as easy, but I’m happy that all the events are taking place."

Meanwhile, senior Louis Mendoza placed in three categories, grabbing the gold in infographics and the bronze in yearbook layout double spread and yearbook theme development.

“It felt like a full circle moment. As a freshman, I placed in one event; So, to have placed in three different categories was a special moment for me," Mendoza said. "It would have been nice to experience the moment in person, but I guess it's just a sign of the times.”

Tiger Tales writer and junior Megan Krok placed third in feature writing.

"I felt like the content of this year's competition didn't differ much from last year's. However, the major difference this year was writing my pieces completely remote," she said in a statement. "Surprisingly, I found that this made writing my article easier. Even though I had the pressure to get an article done in a short period of time, it was less stressful getting to work in my own environment and not in a tense classroom with my competitors where I would typically feel rushed.”

Several other students also placed in the competition:

• Haley Maser, junior — 1st place headline writing; 6th place news writing
• Holley Law, sophomore — 6th place photo storytelling
• Emily Vayda, senior — 7th place photo storytelling
• Kiersten Jordan, senior — 5th place infographics and editorial cartooning
• Madison Horvat, senior — 5th place advertising
• Kelly Rappaport, senior — 1st place yearbook copy
• Jordan Bew, senior — 6th place editorial writing

The students will continue to practice before going on to compete in the sectional competition on April 10. Depending on their performance, they could continue to the state competition on April 24.

English and journalism instructor Jenn Galloy said in a release that she is proud of her students for competing, whether they did or did not win.

“I am always extremely proud of all students who compete for us, whether they placed or didn’t, it takes a lot to put yourself out there and I’m grateful to the students who do," Galloy said. "It’s not just about winning, but getting the exposure to writing under time constraints, using the feedback to improve, and networking with your peers from other schools to ultimately help our own program continue to grow.”