2021 Student Impact Award winner uses skills to bravely document protests in Oregon

Stun grenades lobbed in her direction. Tear-gassed multiple nights so she couldn’t see straight. Shoved against the wall by police officers. Guns pointed at her by federal officers.

This is not what a journalist signs up for when they are placed on an assignment. This is definitely not what a high school journalist is supposed to cover, but Eddy Binford-Ross is no regular journalist.

Binford-Ross has made an impact covering the riots and protests that took place in both Portland and Salem, Oregon, this summer and fall.

Binford-Ross not only covered it for her school news, but also helped a local news organization in its coverage of the events as they quickly unfolded.

She is someone who didn’t back down, handled herself under pressure and succeeded in informing her community. In a time when many states are battling to get New Voices legislation passed, Eddy Binford-Ross showed the nation that student journalists are indeed mature enough and capable enough to cover stories that make an impact.

Her work not only increased South Salem High School’s awareness of current events,  but also the nation at-large.

Binford-Ross is the 2021 Student Journalist Impact Award winner.

This award is co-sponsored by the Journalism Education Association and the Quill and Scroll International Honorary Society for High School Journalists. The award recognizes secondary school students who, through the practice of journalism, have made a significant difference in the lives of others.