MMI students qualify for Pennsylvania School Press Association state journalism competition

Seniors Charles Bower and Lindsey Walko and junior Joshua Narrow captured first place at the Pennsylvania School Press Association regional journalism competition and will represent MMI Preparatory School at the state competition in March.

At the state competition, Bower will compete in the artwork category, while Narrow will compete in the poetry category. Both Bower and Narrow have work published in the MMI Preparatory School Literary Magazine. Walko is the Yearbook Editor and the Production Editor for the literary magazine and will compete in the copywriting category. Jennifer Novotney serves as advisor for the MMI literary magazine and Grete DeAngelo serves as the advisor for the yearbook. Both served as advisors for the competition.

The six Pennsylvania School Press Association regional journalism competitions featured writing, design, and artistic opportunities similar to those offered at the Journalism Education Association’s semi-annual conventions in a regional setting. Bower, Narrow, and Walko competed on the spot against students from more than 10 counties across Northeast Pennsylvania and the Northern Tier at a regional competition hosted by Penn State Lehigh Valley in December. This was the first year that MMI has participated in the competition.

For the artwork competition, Bower was required to read a poem written by a professional poet and create a drawing that was relevant to the poem and that would accompany the poem in the literary magazine. For the poetry competition, Narrow had to write an original poem for a literary magazine using the theme and length given, title the poem, and clearly indicate lines through identification and the use of margins. For the copywriting competition, Walko’s task was to write copy block information provided on a fact sheet.

A team of journalism experts evaluated the work and selected the winners. Bower, Narrow, and Walko will now advance to the state competition on March 4 at the Penn State University Main Campus.

MMI Head of School Thomas G. Hood said, “I want to commend Charles, Joshua, and Lindsey for the fine work they displayed in capturing first place at the Pennsylvania School Press Association regional journalism competition. MMI Preparatory School prepares students to excel in a variety of literary and artistic fields and we’re honored to have these three students represent our school at a state competition.”

Bower is the son of Tracy and Stephen Tichy of Drums, Narrow is the son of Howard and Marie Narrow of Hazleton, and Walko is the daughter of Lawrence Walko and Debbie Brenner-Walko of Drums.