Jesus Mosaic by Bailey van Tassel ’16, which manipulates hundreds of images of saints to create an interpretation of the traditional Sacred Heart of Jesus devotional image
By Louinn Lota
Executive Editor, The Chaminade Talon
For the first time in school history, The Chaminade Talon has won international competition awards.
Talon featured artist, Bailey van Tassell ’16 won 1st Place for Illustration in the Youth Journalism International’s 2015 Excellence in Journalism contest with his piece, Jesus Mosaic. The Talon also took 2nd in Graphic Design, while Editor-in-Chief, Shreya Yepuri ’15 earned Honorable Mention for her article, Boys Sports vs. Girls Sports.
Student journalists, photographers and content designers from 23 U.S. states, Brazil, China, Ethiopia, Egypt, Italy, Pakistan, Palestine, Syria and the United Kingdom, competed for awards. The annual contest is in its sixth year, and recognizes writing, reporting, art, photo and multimedia skills in more than two dozen news, sports and opinion column categories. Eligible works were published in English by non-professionals, age 19 and under, between January 1, 2014 and December 31, 2014.
“This year the field of entries was the strongest I’ve seen,” said contest judge Joe Killian on the Youth Journalism (YJI) website. Another judge, Lynn Abrahamson, a Maryland public health official, agreed, “It was especially hard to choose winners this year.”
“It was inspiring to see so many well-crafted pieces on so many diverse topics,” Mr. Killian added. “It becomes more obvious each year that the talent level is increasing,” added another contest judge Frank Johnson, leader of the Manufacturing Alliance of Connecticut.
“Many of these writers are far better than those who report local news in Connecticut or elsewhere,” Mr. Johnson added.
Dr. Mariechen Puchert from East London, South Africa, also a contest judge, found the feature writing impressive. “It was a pleasure to see that young journalists are not shying away from addressing serious topics that have a direct impact on their peers.”
Chaminade winners include:
Bailey van Tassell ’16, Jesus Mosaic, 1st place, Illustration
The Chaminade Talon, 2nd place, Graphic Design
Shreya Yepuri ’15, Boys Sports vs. Girls Sports, Honorable Mention, Sports News Individual