Nine compete in NSU Journalism Day

Nine students from LSMSA were among the more than 250 aspiring journalists and communications professionals and their advisors who participated in the 44th annual Journalism Day held Friday, Nov. 3, on the campus of Northwestern State University.

Sponsored by the Department of New Media, Journalism and Communication Arts, the day featured breakout sessions in which panelists discussed aspects of public relations, news writing, radio, TV broadcasting, sports coverage and social media.

The nine students were William Casey, a junior from Baton Rouge; Destin Lopez, a sophomore from Lake Arthur; Hannah Miller, a senior from Baton Rouge; Alena Noakes, a senior from Dry Prong; Lauren Rains, a senior from Zachary; Maris Reno, a sophomore from Denham Springs; Emma Simpson, a senior from Shreveport; Victoria Sosa, a junior from Lake Charles; and Dennis Keo, a senior from Buras.

“NSU J-Day was so neat,” said Noakes. “The best part of the event was being able to interact with NSU students who are majoring in journalism. We were able to ask them questions and gain some reassurance when competing.

“Their advice gave me a little bit of insight into the major I intend to pursue in college.”

Noakes, who serves as the editor of “The Renaissance,” participates in newspaper for the hands-on experience in journalism. She also loves having the ability to be involved in keeping print journalism alive.

“The feeling of writing something that matters is the reason I write,” she said. “I love that ‘The Renaissance’ gives me the opportunity to write on things that matter, not only to me, but also to the student body.”

Writing for the school newspaper gives Maris Reno an outlet to publish her work.

“I enjoy writing, so being able to write and have people read it is an extraordinary opportunity,” she said. “I love the feeling once the newspapers are back from the press. It is all of our hard work being distributed throughout the school.

“It is an amazing feeling.”

Other student publications include the Rubicon and Folio.

Awards presented to LSMSA students include:

Lauren Rains won first place in sportswriting
Alena Noakes won first in short film and second in TV Anchor I
LSMSA won first for its school newspaper, The Renaissance
LSMSA won second for its school yearbook, the Rubicon
Hannah Miller won first in radio broadcast
Victoria Sosa won third in TV Anchor II