Spring Break
MHS students win 'write' awards
Hareder Jackson
Issue date: 4/21/04 Section: News
- Page 1 of 1
Macomb High School took first place in all categories Monday at the Annual Creative Writing Festival.
Participating high school groups could submit entries in three categories including fiction, poetry and creative non-fiction.
Faculty members judged entries, and the winner received a plaque, monetary prize and a book autographed by guest author, Morgan McDermott. The English and journalism department, the college of Arts and Sciences and the office of non-student credit programs sponsored the festival. Surrounding high school students and their teachers attended the event.
Aisha Barnes, English professor, has participated in the event for the last three years.
"This is a very exciting day to write and tell stories," Barnes said. "Faculty put a lot of work and time into these workshops, and anyone who wants to come can come. I think it's terrific."
Barnes said 28 teachers, 210 high school students and 50 English department faculty members and staff participated from different areas this year.
The festival provided students and their teachers opportunities to learn about English and journalism programs at Western Illinois University, according to the festival agenda.
Students could attend sessions over different topics, including creative writing activities, peer-sharing workshops; non-fiction writing, journalism and film activities. The workshops offered information on mapmaking and story-making; science fiction and comic books; 9/11 grief; and rock 'n' roll, among others.
Every year, a guest speaker attends the festival. McDermott, graduate of the University of Iowa and current teacher at Adlai E. Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire, spoke at the event. McDermott now serves as associate editor for the Journal Story Quarterly. McDermott also has a short story collection coming out in 2005.
This annul event was offered to all high school students interested in writing poetry, creative non-fiction, drama and fiction, as well as students considering majoring in English and journalism.
Bonnie Sonnek, John Hallwas, Tom Joswick, Jim Courter, Diana Gabbert, Janna Haworth and Deckle McLean were faculty members that canceled their classes to present workshops at the festival.
The English department encouraged creative writing teachers as well as other language arts teachers to bring their students in the future. The department also encouraged students to submit contest entries and to come to the conference eager to celebrate student writers.
Participating high school groups could submit entries in three categories including fiction, poetry and creative non-fiction.
Faculty members judged entries, and the winner received a plaque, monetary prize and a book autographed by guest author, Morgan McDermott. The English and journalism department, the college of Arts and Sciences and the office of non-student credit programs sponsored the festival. Surrounding high school students and their teachers attended the event.
Aisha Barnes, English professor, has participated in the event for the last three years.
"This is a very exciting day to write and tell stories," Barnes said. "Faculty put a lot of work and time into these workshops, and anyone who wants to come can come. I think it's terrific."
Barnes said 28 teachers, 210 high school students and 50 English department faculty members and staff participated from different areas this year.
The festival provided students and their teachers opportunities to learn about English and journalism programs at Western Illinois University, according to the festival agenda.
Students could attend sessions over different topics, including creative writing activities, peer-sharing workshops; non-fiction writing, journalism and film activities. The workshops offered information on mapmaking and story-making; science fiction and comic books; 9/11 grief; and rock 'n' roll, among others.
Every year, a guest speaker attends the festival. McDermott, graduate of the University of Iowa and current teacher at Adlai E. Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire, spoke at the event. McDermott now serves as associate editor for the Journal Story Quarterly. McDermott also has a short story collection coming out in 2005.
This annul event was offered to all high school students interested in writing poetry, creative non-fiction, drama and fiction, as well as students considering majoring in English and journalism.
Bonnie Sonnek, John Hallwas, Tom Joswick, Jim Courter, Diana Gabbert, Janna Haworth and Deckle McLean were faculty members that canceled their classes to present workshops at the festival.
The English department encouraged creative writing teachers as well as other language arts teachers to bring their students in the future. The department also encouraged students to submit contest entries and to come to the conference eager to celebrate student writers.
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