May 5, 2025
Our past three editions
April 21, 2025 National Parks • Roblox kidnapping • Blue Origin flight
April 14, 2025 REAL ID • Drivers licenses • Switch 2
April 7, 2025 Tax filing • TikTok • “Airport theory”
THE LEAD
Lacrosse hazing plot ends in criminal charges
Cover how hazing can spiral out of control, how to avoid it
A staged kidnapping of a lacrosse player in New York, meant to be a prank, ended with 11 students facing criminal charges in New York. The prank involved the abduction of one player who was tied up and put in a trunk with a pillowcase over his head, CNN reported. The player was dropped in a wooded area, and later picked up and taken home.
The victim’s family reported the incident to the school the next morning and it was then reported to the sheriff’s office. All 11 suspects surrendered during a 48-hour amnesty deal offered by the sheriff, and are facing misdemeanor charges instead of a felony kidnapping charge. The rest of the varsity boys’ lacrosse season was cancelled, CNN reported.
What you can do —
Pranks don’t have to be this extreme to constitute hazing and there may be inappropriate pranks happening in your school community. If you know of behavior that is out of line happening in sports teams or other extracurricular groups, report on it. Talk to students, staff and even graduates about what can be done to build a community that doesn’t endorse or lead to unacceptable behavior.
It also could be good to lay out resources for students if they do feel they are being hazed or bullied in any way. Check in with the counseling office about what resources are available and outline how to report such instances.
Noteworthy
Trump orders cease of federal funding for NPR, PBS
Look into effects on news landscape, local stations
Late last week, President Donald Trump issued an executive order that would cease federal funding for NPR and PBS. The two public broadcasters receive funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a publicly funded non-profit. It is not clear that the president has the authority to order the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, or CPB, to cease funding, NPR reported.
The Corporation dismissed the executive order May 2, saying CPB is not a federal executive agency and this is not subject to the President’s authority. Trump’s executive order sites ideological bias as the reason for cutting funding.
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting is already suing the Trump administration for Trump’s executive order saying the Corporation had to fire three of its five board members.
What you can do —
Most of the federal funding PBS and NPR receive goes to the member stations, not the national organizations, the CEO of PBS said in a PBS News Hour segment last week. The idea behind the public-private partnership that PBS and NPR run on is that federal funding supports stations in places that would not otherwise have stations. Check in with your local member stations, see how much of their funding is federal and how the proposed cut would impact them. This is also a good opportunity to cover how much public broadcasting really does — long-term favorites like “Sesame Street” and “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” came from PBS and news programming on NRP has a wide reach.
The fate of this executive order is still up in the air, but regardless of the outcome, this executive order is an attack on the First Amendment. Talk to reporters at public broadcasting institutions and media experts about what a cut to broadcasting could mean. There are also non-news angles here: public broadcasting tech is used as a backup for emergency alerts across the country.
(Bonus: NPR published an interesting article a few weeks ago about how it covers itself when NPR makes headlines. It is worth a read.)
What’s viral
What makes us believe conspiracy theories? CNN podcast unpacks the science
Dive into local superstitions, theories
The newest season of The Account from CNN is covering all things conspiracy theory. Senior correspondent Donie O’Sullivan will spend the season, titled Persuadable, diving into why we believe crazy things — with the help of cult survivors, psychologists and families who have helped their family members before.
Conspiracy theories make the news all the time, like Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s theory about a secret vaccine database, so take the time to dive into why we are vulnerable to believe crazy things.
What you can do —
Does your school have any wacky beliefs? Crazy traditions? Random superstitions? It could be fun to dive into where those came from in your school’s history, while also talking to experts about why our brains lock onto specific things and hold tight. Take some time to report on how to better question the information students are bombarded with.
IT’S AN HONOR
It’s always membership season
We are shipping orders within 24 hours of receiving either payment or your purchase order!
You still have time to nominate students for membership, order pins, cords and other Quill and Scroll materials and memorabilia.
We haven’t changed the ordering process from last year. For those wanting to ditch the paper version, you just need to select the form based on how you would like to pay. We have one version for credit card and another version for check or purchase order. (We’ve added buttons for ease of finding these.) As usual, credit card payments are charged $4.49 per order for processing.
We also have added a membership ordering guide to our site.
While you’re ordering, don’t forget to include any cords and other Quill and Scroll materials and memorabilia.
If your initiation is the week of May 26 now is the time to order!
Members-only area reminder
We hope you’ve enjoyed the first year of Quill and Scroll’s members-only area. We are excited to continue developing and expanding the offerings! If there is anything you would like to see on there, please reach out with ideas to [email protected]
Also, just a heads up that later this summer we will be updating the access list to the members-only area — if your school has not inducted members this school year, your account will be deactivated.
Upcoming Weekly Scroll update
This is our last Weekly Scroll. We will resume in September 2025.
Some advisers and students have found linking to our Weekly Scroll page beneficial.
Have a great summer!
Writing, Visual, Multimedia winners announced
Quill and Scroll is pleased to announce the winners in the 2025 Writing, Visual, Multimedia competition. More than 120 schools submitted entries to this year’s contest, for a total of more than 2,200 entries.
The winners were announced April 26 at the JEA/NSPA Spring National High School Journalism Convention in Seattle.
PSJA winners announced
For those who entered our Private School Journalism Contest Finalists, the results are posted on our site.
The winners were announced April 26 at the JEA/NSPA Spring National High School Journalism Convention in Seattle.
School of the New York Times Summer Academy opportunity
We are excited to announce our partnership with the School of the New York Times. Students from schools with a Quill and Scroll Charter can receive $500 off enrollment in the School of the New York Times Summer Academy.
Summer Academy is open to high school students (grades 10-12 and Graduating Seniors based on the grade the student is entering in the Fall 2025 school year). Students must be 15 years old by the first day of their term. All students applying to Summer Academy for the first time are required to complete an online application. Returning students do not need to reapply.
Applications are still open with a rolling deadline on a first-come first-serve basis.
Gloria Shields NSPA Media Workshop set for June 30-July 3, in Dallas
The Gloria Shields NSPA Media Workshop returns to the Dallas/Addison Marriott Quorum by the Galleria June 30-July 3, 2025, with bonus classes on June 29. Workshop registration is $140 per student or adviser. The extra cost for the Sunday bonus class is $20 per person.
In 2024, 808 students from 79 schools took advantage of the instruction from our exceptional faculty.
Complete information, including a promotional video, is available on the workshop website. Registration is open.
Just a thought
This is the last Weekly Scroll of the year.
We wanted to thank you for all you do daily for journalism students and your community.
I appreciate all you’re doing to further journalism education. If there’s something we can do to help you, please let me know. We use your feedback when we look at what we need to improve, change and offer.
We hope to continue to develop a few new items during the summer to help you with your chapter. If you have any suggestions, please let us know using this form. Our Student Advisory Board and staff work to develop materials to help.
Don’t forget to encourage your students to apply for our Student Advisory Board for next fall. It’s a great way for them to have input and be involved nationally. The application is available now.
Have a great rest of your school year, and I hope you enjoy these last few weeks with your students.
And yes, if you still need cords, we are sending them out on a daily basis.
We look forward to working with you next fall. We will resume the Weekly Scroll after Labor Day weekend.
I wish you all a restful and relaxing summer!
— Lori Keekley
