Information for the state convention was mailed to schools last week. The deadline for the reduced rate of $10 per delegate at the MHSPA State Convention is Oct. 14. After that, rates will increase to $15 per delegate. Non-members pay $20. We have some fantastic local journalists lined up, including keynote speaker Neal Justin, a television critic for the Star Tribune. We’ll also announce the state winners of best publication and the winners of MHSPA Gold Medallions.
The State Convention is Oct. 21 at Coffman Memorial Union on the University of Minnesota’s Twin Cities campus. Registration begins at 8 a.m. The day concludes by 2 p.m. Join us to keep the year heading in the right direction! Download the registration form here.
Our line-up of professional speakers includes professionals who have worked in newsrooms around the nation, including one who earned the Pultizer Prize; a reporter/host for Minnesota Public Radio; members of the faculty at the University of Minnesota’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication; yearbook publishing professionals; and experienced Minnesota media advisers.
Entry forms are online for the MHSPA Gold Medallion Awards and for the All-State Publication awards. Details are available on each entry form. Winners will be announced at the state convention in Minneapolis on Oct. 21.
The Minnesota High School Press Association is proud to present its 2008 Journalism Educator of the Year honor to Laurie Hansen of Stillwater Area High School and adviser to the Kabekonian yearbook and Stylus magazine. Hansen was honored at a faculty meeting at her school on June 9, 2008.
It is hard to find someone who has done more for high school journalism in Minnesota than Laurie Hansen. She has created opportunities for students through connections with professional organizations, summer workshops and write-off competitions. She has inspired and encouraged students in yearbook, newspaper and literary magazines around the state and around the country. In Minnesota, she has taught at the summer workshop held at the University of Minnesota and organized an arts writing day in cooperation with the Guthrie Theater.
Additionally, she mentors advisers around Minnesota. Glenn Morehouse Olson of St. Francis High School met her at a summer workshop. She wrote, “Laurie Hansen filled my bag with handouts, schedules and tips, she filled my head with strong advice and she filled my heart with the fire to jump feet first into the often-crazy world of scholastic journalism.”
Kathryn Campbell of St. Paul Academy and Summit School wrote in her nomination, “I can’t think of a student or adviser who has met Laurie that hasn’t been deeply influenced by her teaching and who does not feel a deep respect for her skill.”
As part of her recognition, Hansen will spend a day in the newsroom at the Star Tribune newspaper in Minneapolis, hosted by Executive Editor Nancy Barnes and Managing Editor Scott Gillespie.
###
All Minnesota high school and junior high school student journalists are eligible for the 2008 Gold Medallion Awards. Entries must arrive (not be postmarked) at MHSPA by Sept. 10 to be eligible. MHSPA recommends that advisers review all entries prior to submission. Winners will be announced at MHSPA’s Minnesota State High School Journalism Convention on Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2008. Winners will receive award certificates. MHSPA reserves the right to publish winners and submissions on its Web site and in its publications.
MHSPA members enter for free. Non-members pay $5 per entry. All entries must have been published in your 2007-2008 school year newspaper/newsmagazine, yearbook or literary/feature magazine or by broadcast students. Two entries from each school may be entered in each sub-category. See the attached call for entries for categories, additional rules and submission requirements.
They’re not due until Sept. 10, but why not send them in this spring instead?
Forms are now available to nominate students for MHSPA’s annual All-Minnesota Editors, All-State Journalists and Distinguished Journalists awards. The awards are based on years of participation in student publications and grade point average. The awards are free for MHSPA members. Download the forms here and submit entries by the May 2, 2008, deadline to get recognition for your deserving student staff members.
Star Tribune, March 22, 2008:
The Minnesota High School Press Association annually selects promising young high-school journalists to visit the Guthrie Theater for a day-long session that includes lectures, a tour and a chance to see and write reviews of a Guthrie show. In March, about 30 students saw Wendy Wasserstein’s final play, “Third,” and submitted reviews. The two reviews below rose to the top of the heap and were selected for publication on the Star Tribune’s website.
Congratulations to Hannah Rank and Charl Coetzee on being selected for publication by the Star Tribune. Here is the link to the stories:
http://www.startribune.com/entertainment/onstage/16913596.html
Save the date! MHSPA is again pleased to offer the Write-Off contests on Friday, May 16 at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. Click to download the information sheet and registration form. Registration and payment are due by May 2. Note the format and contest changes from last year.
MHSPA this year is recognizing a teacher/adviser through the Journalism Educator of the Year award. Anyone can nominate a current journalism educator in Minnesota, so get thinking about who deserves this honor (heck, you an even nominate yourself) and send in a letter. The recipient will have the opportunity to spend the day in the newsroom of the Star Tribune newspaper, hosted by the top two editors, Nancy Barnes and Scott Gillespie.
Click here to download the nomination form. The deadline is April 18.
MHSPA and the Journalism Educators of Minnesota are pleased to again offer the Arts Journalism/Review Writing contest in conjunction with the Guthrie Theater on March 12 in Minneapolis. Participation is limited. Those interested must apply by Feb. 22 to be considered for selection. This event is open to MHSPA members only. Download the application form.
Update: The deadline has been extended to Tuesday, Feb. 26.
Winning entries from the MHSPA Wild Media Day held Jan. 15, 2008, at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, with judge comments:
STORY WRITING
Winner: Elise Butler, St. Paul Academy, “Unique Rookie Receiving Warm Welcome”
The lede quickly establishes the subject - Aaron Voros’s rookie season with the Minnesota Wild - and engages the reader with a crisp athletic writing style that complements the subject. Butler localizes the story well and uses quotations from Voros and others to provide important detail and a broad sense of the player, the Wild, and the Minnesota fan base.
PHOTOJOURNALISM
Winner: Sam Oldenburg, Owatonna
Nice attention to details, with the repetition of bottles lining the wall. Good attention paid to depth of field (player is in focus).
BROADCAST
Winner: Mike Luebner and Evan Batten, Eastview High