Every year, the IJEA (Illinois Journalism Education Association) selects 12 students all over the state to be a part of the All-State Journalism Team. This year one of Okawville’s own, Jared Juenger, was selected. 

The journalism director here at OHS, Dana Donovan, nominated Juenger to be a part of the team. From there, Juenger, along with many other nominees around Illinois, wrote an essay; The topic was: “What does journalism mean to you?”. The All-State selection committee also reviewed some of each nominee’s journalism work.

“I was really surprised when I got the email that I had been selected”, Juenger said. “I’ve worked really hard to improve our LaunchPad this past year, and being named to the All-State Team means a lot.  I could not have done it without the help of Mrs. Donovan, my Co-Editor Briley Rhodes, and the rest of the staff. It is pretty cool to be one of the top 12 in the whole state.” 

As a member of the LaunchPad staff, I can definitely say that Jared is well-deserving of this achievement. He always works hard and helps us to become better writers. His hard work and dedication to journalism have paid off greatly!