“Journalism depends on the people you meet and the relationships you [make],” The Reflector yearbook Co-Editor-in-Chief and 42Fifty Photography Editor Liam Piekarczyk reminisced at the end of his trip to Nashville, TN, last weekend when he returned from the Journalism Education Association (JEA) Convention. “That is one of the things that make [journalism] special… Being able to collaborate and share stories with people.”
Piekarczyk is not alone. Nine fellow OH student journalists joined him in feeling this spirit of scholastic journalism after attending the four-day convention on Thurs., Nov. 13 – Sun., Nov. 16, with 5,312 total attendees from 46 states and eight countries.
A highlight of the trip was the first student presentation for OH students at this convention: three editors-in-chief, including Piekarczyk and 42Fifty Co-Editors-in-Chief Brandyn Hudson and Ethan Monahan, gave a presentation about OH’s successful involvement of the student body during Scholastic Journalism Week, held each February.
“The presentation was rough around the edges,” admitted Monahan, who presented with his team to a room of over 70 attendees. “But that is what made our presentation great. We were a bunch of students who went up there and just did it.”
The presentation team received a video note from Dr. PJ Cabrera, JEA’s leader for Scholastic Journalism Week, thanking them for championing the event.
“Getting that video? It was really big,” Monahan said. “It just shows that the work we put into [our presentation] paid off, and that feels really, really good to know that our presentation was nationally impressive to someone – like the someone,” Monahan said, referencing Cabrera.
The benefits of the conference went well beyond the presentation team and accolades, however. Co-presenter and 42Fifty Co-Editor-in-Chief Brandyn Hudson solidified his desire to pursue journalism as a career while at the convention. “Journalism? Yeah, it’s so important, [and] being at this conference, really [teaches] people about the great outcome of what you can become [with] benefits and connections to others in the field.”
Piekarczyk, who captured the student team’s adventures through a photo essay, echoed Hudson’s feelings about the importance of journalism and its ability to connect people. “Journalism thrives not off of drama,” Piekarczyk said,” but important events that happen in our worlds and in our community. [That’s] what we look for in both [publication] programs, [as] our goals as the same.”
The national convention, hosted by JEA and the National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA), offered students to attend a selection of sessions from a pool of hundreds, all with the aim of bringing back fresh ideas to grow both publication programs at OH.
42Fifty reporter John Collins aims to bring back training to help 42Fifty reporters live-broadcast sporting events. “Could we broadcast our sports at Oswego? Yeah, but we don’t,” Collins said.
The benefits of this system, he explained, work for sports coverage, but also work as a service to the school community. “The presenter I went to said that sometimes, the only way that parents oversees or something could see their kid, could be to listen to the live stream of the school’s athletic events,” Collins explained. “So I think this could be a way to up our [overall] cred.”
Like Collins, attendees Taylor Ana, Jessica Bellah, Roman Berger, Ainslee Gerardot, and Hailey Nass also brought back ideas for their respective publications.
Gathered ideas included starting a literary magazine (Ana), running improved pitch meetings (Bellah), covering politics at the local level (Berger), growing social media coverage (Gerardot), and growing leaders (Nass).
Adult-atendees also gained information from sessions. 42Fifty adviser Amy Howerton said one impact-filled session included meeting Cathy Kuhlmeier from the landmark Hazelwood court case which impacted student press freedoms in the 1980s.
“I remember learning about this court case in high school and college,” Howerton said, “and I teach this case now, so meeting Kuhlmeier in person and hearing her first-hand, lived experience as a student journalist whose case went to the Supreme Court left a huge impression on me.”
In addition to bringing back learning from sessions, attendee Cristina Murillo also found great benefit in simply being around hundreds of like-minded journalists during the convention. “It was just the best!” she smiled, feeling inspired by the trip.
“Really, the benefit of student journalism is giving students a voice to use in their school,” Murillo concluded. “Student journalists… are like representatives of the student voice, and they provide information about the school they share with everyone else. It’s just so important.”
The Nov. 2026 JEA Convention will be held in Orlando. Student journalists who are part of the 42Fifty and The Reflector staff will have the opportunity to attend.
42Fifty is the student media Publication of Oswego High School, Oswego, IL. Stories attributed to 42Fifty are written by editorial staff, or in the case of staff editorial, reflect a quorum of the student staff's ideas and opinions. To learn more about the 42Fifty staff, please see the About or Our Staff page on the website.
