Marist High School’s student journalists took home top honors at the annual Scholastic Press Association of Chicago contest, earning awards in seven categories for their work in news writing, sports coverage, and digital media.
The competition, held on March 14 at Northwestern University’s Medill campus in Evanston, brought together high school publications from across the city. Students attended educational seminars led by professional journalists and professors before the awards ceremony, where Marist’s MHS Media team was recognized for its excellence in reporting and storytelling.
“This is a tremendous accomplishment by our dedicated journalists who work daily to provide important updates and insights on issues that matter to the Marist community,” said Susan Carlson, journalism and broadcasting teacher at Marist. “This validates their commitment to the highest journalistic standards. I am so proud of them.”
Marist’s MHS Media is the school’s student-led journalism program, responsible for producing news, sports, and feature stories for the online publication MHSmedia.marist.net. The program allows students to develop reporting, writing, and multimedia skills while covering issues that matter to their school community.
Among the honorees was Ethan Froylan, whose news story “Final Exam Weight”earned an award for excellent achievement. Froylan also secured recognition in the staff editorial category for “Marist Students Need More Sleep.” Ava Krueger, Aubrey Rowe, and Mike Philip were honored in the special coverage category for their piece “Stressed Out Student Athletes,” while Philip, Rowe, and Molly Julian received a superior achievement award for their sports feature “Former RedHawks Compete at National Championship.”
In sports news reporting, Nick Larson took home a top honor for “Varsity Basketball Swishes into Season.” Broadcast journalists Gavin Looney and Brooke Kilroy were also recognized for their work on “Meet Will Denny,” and the MHS Media staff as a whole earned an excellence award for its overall website.
Located at 4200 W. 115th St., Marist offers multiple avenues for students to explore journalism, with three levels of coursework, Journalism 1, Journalism 2, and Advanced Journalism Lab, as well as the MHS Media Club, which meets weekly after school.
Whether through structured classes or extracurricular involvement, students contribute to the school’s digital publication and gain hands-on experience in news writing, reporting, and storytelling.
Marist students said the awards serve as both recognition and motivation.
“This award means so much to me,” Ava Krueger, 16, of Oak Lawn, said. “It shows all my hard work is really paying off and is motivation for me to keep digging and writing better articles.”
Aubrey Rowe, 17, of Chicago, agreed. “This award meant a lot to me,” she said. “This showed me not only that journalism can be my future, but also that all my hard work and dedication paid off.”
Carlson, who has had a distinguished career in broadcast journalism, sees these opportunities as invaluable.
“Marist journalism students are strengthening their writing skills, in addition to learning important lessons regarding the pursuit of truth,” she said. “This is crucial in today’s media landscape. Our country needs more journalists deeply committed to the highest standards of verification in truth-telling. Whether these students pursue journalism as a profession or not, they leave the program as better communicators and more educated media consumers.”
As Marist’s young journalists reflect on their success, they remain focused on the future, eager to continue producing impactful stories that inform and engage their school and community.
