A Mississippi high school that has produced a number of journalism students who have attended the University of Mississippi was recently named a second place winner in an international competition.
St. Joseph Catholic School’s student-produced, weekly newscast Bruin News Now took second place in an international competition sponsored by the honor society for high school journalists.
The Bruin News Now special edition for Friday, Jan. 17, 2020, filmed at the Mississippi Capitol, placed second in the award for News Show for Web or TV. Quill & Scroll International Honor Society for High School Journalists sponsored the 2020 Writing, Photo and Multimedia Contest.
“I’m so excited and couldn’t be more proud of our dedicated, hard-working, high school journalists,” Principal Dena Kinsey said. “Despite the fact we are a small school of about 400 students in a small state, our students competed head-to-head with larger schools here and abroad and finished second. That says a lot about the quality of students at St. Joe and in our journalism program.”
St. Joseph is located in Madison, Mississippi. The Quill & Scroll contest saw high school journalism students from five countries submit a total of 2,439 entries in 30 categories. Entries came from schools in such places as Los Angeles, Miami, China, Singapore and South Korea.
St. Joseph Catholic School, founded in 1870 by the Sisters of Mercy, is celebrating 150 years of faith formation and excellence in education. The school offers seventh- through 12th-grade students a rigorous college prep curriculum grounded in the teachings of the Catholic Church.
St. Joe, located at 308 New Mannsdale Road in Madison, just west of the Interstate 55-Mississippi 463 Exit, is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, the accrediting arm of Cognia.
Journalism is one of several electives that students can take at St. Joe.
Besides Bruin News Now, journalism students also produce the school yearbook, The Shield; an online news website, The Bear Facts; a weekly podcast and radio show, “The Bruin Buzz Live”; and live streaming video and radio coverage of varsity football and basketball.
Winners
“The Bruin Buzz Live” and live sports coverage air over WJXC Jackson, Mississippi Catholic Radio, 107.9, whose studio is located on the St. Joe campus. Journalism students produce the only local programming on WJXC, which otherwise carries EWTN radio programming.
Bruin News Now is in its fifth year and recently celebrated its 150th episode. The Mississippi Scholastic Press Association named Bruin News Now the state’s best high school newscast in 2017 and 2018; it was a finalist for the award in 2019.
“This award is huge,” said St. Joe senior Hannah Dear, who co-anchored the winning newscast. “All my classmates and I are so grateful to have an opportunity to explore broadcast journalism at our age. This award is a great reflection on our school and how strong and amazing our journalism program is.”
Kinsey agreed.
“Our students work hard every day to produce a quality, weekly newscast that is so professional it could easily be mistaken for a local TV newscast,” she said. “That kind of dedication is evident in every aspect of our journalism program and our entire school.”
BRUIN NEWS NOW
- Bruin News Now, the student-produced, weekly video newscast, is one part of St. Joseph Catholic School’s award-winning high school journalism program. BNN, now in its fifth year, uploads new episodes every Friday during the school year to the Bruin News Now channel on YouTube.
- You can watch the winning newscast by clicking here.
- You can watch the 150th episode by clicking here.
- You can subscribe to the BNN YouTube channel by clicking here.
