Student journalists compete at KU; 11 qualify for state

Eleven+newspaper+students+competed+in+the+Kansas+Scholastic+Press+Association%E2%80%99s+5A%2F6A+regional+journalism+competition+Friday%2C+Feb.+23.

Eleven newspaper students competed in the Kansas Scholastic Press Association’s 5A/6A regional journalism competition Friday, Feb. 23.

Eleven South newspaper journalists joined hundreds from eastern part of Kansas at the Kansas Scholastic Press Association’s regional journalism competition Friday, Feb. 23, at the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kan.

Students qualified for the upcoming state competition on May 5 by placing first, second, third or honorable mention. Ten South students have qualified for state.

Newspaper students competing at Lawrence included Delaney Garrelts, Evan Kauffman, Aysiah Loving, Megan Pham, Kali Ray, seniors; Tristan Allen, Kayla Balcom, Khadija Ceesay, Mara Gee, juniors; Maddie Black, sophomore; and Alex Burbidge, freshman.

Newspaper and photojournalists qualifying for state were the following: Burbidge with first and Allen with honorable mention in headline writing; Kauffman with honorable mention in copy editing; Pham with first in editorial cartoon; Ceesay with second in editorial writing; Scarlett with second and Caudle with third in photo illustration; and Turvey with third in sports photography.

Yearbook students who qualified were Megan Duffield, senior, second, and Sydney Crandall, senior, honorable mention,  in yearbook sports writing as well as Parker Erickson in Advertising.

Students competed in on-site writing, editing and cartooning contests: news, sports, feature and editorial writing; copy editing and editorial cartooning.  In the writing contests, students were provided with information and notes from interviews they were to read and distill into stories within 90 minutes.

Those in cartooning were provided with information and interviews. After reading such, the cartoonists were to establish an opinion and convey it in a cartoon. Those competing in copy editing were presented with a set of multiple choice questions they had to correct according to Associated Press style. Then, each had to read a story and to edit it, noting content/writing problems as well as convention/AP style issues.

Several South yearbook students also competed in similar yearbook skill/writing contests.

Entries requiring design, graphics, headline writing and photography skills were completed and submitted to the regional competition Wednesday, Feb. 14.

The students’ work was judged by journalism professionals; results were available for all of the regionals contests across Kansas March 9.