Statewide high school journalism contest

March 10 deadline

[March 05, 2014]  CHICAGO — The Illinois Woman's Press Association, in association with the National Federation of Press Women, honors the best student journalists, writers and communicators in the state through an annual high school communications contest.

This year, the National Federation of Press Women has converted the contest's entry system into a quick and easy-to-use online entry system. The link to enter work, which can be uploaded by a teacher or student, is https://omnicontests4.com/
default.aspx?comp_id=1282.

Students may enter work in one of 20 categories: Editorial, Opinion, News Story, Feature Story, Sports Story, Columns, Feature Photo, Sports Photo, Cartooning, Review, Graphics/Photo Illustration, Single-Page Layout, Double-Truck Layout, Environment, Video News Story, Video Feature Story, Video Sports Story, Yearbook Layout, Yearbook Photo and Yearbook Copywriting.

The student's work must have been completed between March 1, 2013, and Feb. 28, 2014. Entries must be submitted electronically by March 10. More information is available by emailing [e-mail] or by going to the student contest section of iwpa.org.

Each state winner of first, second, third or honorable mention will receive a certificate, with first-place winners going on to compete nationally. IWPA presents the Silver Pen Award to the high school achieving the highest number of points among student contest entrants. The 2014 high school winning the Silver Pen Award will receive $100. State honors are presented during an IWPA awards luncheon in May.

Those who place first in the NFPW contest receive $100 cash. National honors are presented during an awards luncheon at the annual NFPW conference, which will be Sept. 4-6 in Greenville, S.C. The 2014 national judges will select a "best of show" from all the first-place national awards The school attended by the student who wins this Award of Excellence receives $500 for the school.

For more information, contact Cecilia Green, contest co-director, at [e-mail] or 630-632-3053.

[Text from file received from the Illinois Woman's Press Association]