By Louisa Avery, MJE, Scholastic Journalism Week committee
The Journalism Education Association has scheduled Scholastic Journalism Week for Feb. 21-27, 2021. The Scholastic Journalism Week committee selected “What We Do Matters” as the theme.
The 2020-21 Scholastic Journalism Week design was created by Cooper Lyon as part of the National Student Media Contests graphic design contest. Lyon is advised by Mike Simmons, MJE, at Corning-Painted Post High School in Corning, New York.
Over the past few years, journalists and journalism have seemingly been under a growing microscope and unprecedented scrutiny with everything that comes out of their newsrooms. JEA and the Scholastic Journalism Week committee want to emphasize the importance of The Fourth Estate, within the walls of scholastic newsrooms and outside them.
“When the committee met to discuss ideas, we all agreed that the work of our students needed to be spotlighted,” Scholastic Journalism Week coordinator PJ Cabrera, CJE, said. “It’s been a year in which journalism itself has been questioned so much, so it’s great to remind students that what they are doing is important.”
Throughout the week, and throughout the year, student journalists are encouraged to use the hashtags #SJW2021 and #WhatWeDoMatters when sharing works of journalism, reminding their community of the importance of scholastic journalism. Share the hashtags on Facebook, Twitter andInstagram.
The Scholastic Journalism Week committee wants to feature schools, putting a major focus on the many ways in which scholastic newsrooms around the country are diverse. Share a photo of your staff in action for possible inclusion on JEA’s Scholastic Journalism Week Twitter account. At least one school will be featured every week going into #SJW2021 and even beyond. Featured schools will receive a certificate to share with school administrators with props and kudos for the great work they are doing.
Lindsay Porter