April 6, 2026
Our past three editions
March 30, 2026 TSA • Local politics • ‘Project Hail Mary’
March 16, 2026 Gas prices • AI chatbots • March Madness
March 2, 2026 Social media trial • March Madness • Oscars
THE LEAD
Large food pantry network closes, leaves people in a lurch
Cover food insecurity in your community, local options
At the end of March, Ruby’s Pantry suddenly closed, the New York Times reported. The food pantry network previously stocked 85 locations across Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota and Iowa. Several volunteers wondered if financial pressures are to blame for the unexpected closure, the New York Times reported.
The network served many small, rural communities and offered grocery bundles typically worth $125 for a $25 donation.
What you can do —
Regardless of if Ruby’s Pantry operated in your area, take a look at the options available for those experiencing food insecurity. Cover local efforts, how students and staff can get involved and if the system is facing any struggles.
Talk to community organizers about what efforts are ongoing to serve the community. There may be options within your school for students to use.
Noteworthy
CDC stops diagnostic testing for number of infectious diseases
Look into state stopgaps, implications of limited information
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has paused diagnostic testing for a variety of infectious diseases, including rabies, monkeypox and Epstein-Barr, Associated Press reported.
A spokesperson said the pause will be temporary and attributed it to “a routine review,” AP says. Some states will be able to fill in the gaps, like California and New York, but not all will.
The testing pause comes after a year of dramatic downsizing of the CDC.
What you can do —
Testing for things like monkeypox and rabies may not feel like a local story, but there are implications to this pause at the local level. The pause will create gaps in national surveillance and the ability to respond to any outbreaks that do happen.
Locally, talk to hospitals and labs about what testing is still available — and what people can do if they need a test. These aren’t tests people can usually foresee needing, so having information on what to do in an emergency could be helpful.
What’s viral
NASA sends astronauts to moon in Artemis II mission
Cover science priorities, space fan reactions
Last week, four astronauts embarked on a 10-day mission to the moon and back. The crew of Artemis II launched April 1 with the goal of flying around the moon and observing its far side, including parts humans have never seen with their eyes before, Scientific American reported.
The flyby is scheduled for April 6, before the astronauts will leverage the moon’s gravitational pull to slingshot themselves back toward earth. During the more than week long mission the astronauts are also investigating other scientific questions including how organs-on-a-chip fare through space travel and how CPR works in space.
What you can do —
While the Artemis II astronauts are literally hundreds of thousands of miles away, the impact of the mission may be felt more locally. This is the first time humans have gone to the moon in more than 50 years. Talk to those in your community about what the Apollo missions were like in the 1960s and ‘70s.
There are likely avid NASA fans in your school community — check with them about their favorite parts of this mission. There is also a chance to do some science reporting as more happenings are reported from Artemis II. As a bonus, NASA photos and videos are generally fair use since they are made by a government agency, which can make reporting easier.
100 years of Quill & Scroll
Society celebrates centennial anniversary April 10
A century ago, a group of high school journalism educators gathered with George H. Gallup at the University of Iowa and Quill and Scroll got its start. Their goal was to encourage and recognize individual student achievement in journalism and scholastic publication.
Since April 10, 1926, more than 15,000 charters have been granted across all 50 states, the District of Columbia and more than 35 countries.
Over the last 100 years, Quill and Scroll has undergone some major changes — but the heart of the organization is still the same. The Society exists to celebrate the hard work of scholastic journalists and provide advisers with resources to use in the classroom.
Share your Quill & Scroll story
In honor of the centennial, Quill and Scroll is collecting testimonials, memories and stories from Quill and Scroll from student members, advisers, former staff and friends.Thank you for taking a few minutes to share your experiences on this form! Your answers may be used in marketing and communications materials.
Please share with others in your network — we want to hear from everyone.
IT’S AN HONOR
It’s always membership season
Don’t forget you can nominate members year round
Now is the best time to order for your induction! Not only will you beat the ordering rush, you could also have Quill and Scroll function as a journalism club or volunteer organization. (And don’t worry, if you’re worried that having chapter activities will just add another to do time to the list, we have several suggested chapter activities in “lesson plan” format so students can lead these!) While you’re ordering, don’t forget to include any 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.
If your initiation is the week of April 20 or before, now is the time to order! Please note that we will be out of the office the week of April 13 for the JEA/NSPA National High School Journalism Convention so please allow extra time for processing,
Take advantage of our advisers-only resource area
Quill and Scroll has expanded its advisers-only area, which includes bellringers and lesson plans for advisers who have initiated members within the past school year.
Advisers, if you inducted members in the 2025-26 school year, check your email (and your spam!) for a message from [email protected]. That email should contain your login information. Please be sure to accept cookies when you log in! If you have trouble, you can contact us at [email protected]. If you have inducted members this school year, we update access every few weeks, so keep an eye on your email.
Members-only area highlight
If you are gearing up for a spring induction, take a few minutes to explain what Quill and Scroll is with this slideshow.
WVM, PSJA contest finalists announced
Quill and Scroll is proud to announce the finalists in both the 2026 Writing, Visual, Multimedia contest and the Private School Journalism Association contest. The final results will be announced at the Spring National High School Journalism Convention later this month and posted online.
Benz Scholarship
Applications open for $250 adviser award
Quill and Scroll will award the $250 Lester G. Benz Scholarship to an adviser who undertakes a professional development activity over the summer or in the 2026-27 academic year.
The award can be used to attend a National High School Journalism Conference, to pay for tuition for a university course in a relevant subject area, or for a summer workshop, the JEA Summer Advisers Institute or a local summer workshop in your state, to name a few.
Applications are now being accepted. Deadline is April 10, 2025.
The award is named after former Quill and Scroll Executive Director Lester G. Benz.
Student scholarships
National winners in Quill and Scroll contests — such as the Yearbook Excellence Contest or the International Writing, Photography and Multimedia Contest and the Eye on Ivy Editorial Writing Contest – are eligible as seniors to apply for Quill and Scroll scholarships: the Edward J. Nell Memorial, or the George and Ophelia Gallup awards.
The Richard P. Johns award is available to all Quill and Scroll seniors, including those who did not enter contests. The scholarships are awarded for the freshman year only and can be paid in two installments.
All scholarships can be used for tuition, room and board at any college or university. Recipients must major in journalism or a related area of communications. The scholarships are awarded for the freshman year only and are paid through the university or college bursar’s office.
Scholarships amounts can vary. The Quill and Scroll Scholarship Committee will determine the amounts based on the applicants’ qualifications and recommendations
Please see this link to apply.
The 2026 scholarship application will close May 8, 2026.
Applications are open for the 2026 Vanessa Shelton Chapter of the Year
Has your chapter been active in Quill and Scroll this year? If so, it’s time to apply for the Chapter of the Year.
Chapters must have had initiated members in each of the past three years.
Applications are free and winners will receive a plaque, $250 for the classroom, four free memberships and honor cords and one member spot on our Student Advisory Board.
During the past 99 years, Quill and Scroll has granted charters to about 15,000 schools around the world. When a school’s journalism program receives its charter, students in the school begin a Quill and Scroll chapter there. Quill and Scroll does not dictate how active a chapter should be, but the Chapter Manual does provide some guidance on the value of an “active chapter,” the activities it may engage in, and its general goals:
“The chapter can accomplish these goals:
(1) inspire members of the staff to greater efforts;
(2) attract students of higher ability to publications/media work by offering them journalistic recognition and honors;
(3) provide incentive for the development of the journalism department and the improvement of school publications/media; and
(4) secure greater recognition of journalism work by students, school officials and the community.”
The deadline is April 16 and the winner will be announced mid-May. The application form is on our website.
2026 YEC open for submissions
Submissions are due Oct. 1
The 2026 Yearbook Excellence Contest is open for entries through the start of October. The cost for each entry is $8. High schools will be divided by size — Class A for 1,000 or more students in grades 9-12, and Class B for 999 or fewer students in grades 9-12. Middle schools are in one “class” category, so advisers do not need to select a class.
The categories vary widely — including many forms of photography, writing and design. There are also submission opportunities for beginning staff members and middle school yearbooks. New this year is the Social media journalist category, designed to recognize excellence in use of social media.
YEC is an all-digital contest. Entries (PDFs of pages and/or JPGs of photos) will be stored online, and publications shared the URLs of those spreads, images or folders containing multiple files on the entry form. Because all work must be in published form, we do not accept Google docs. You may submit PDFs that are uploaded to Google Drive, but not unpublished work written in a Google Doc.
School of the New York Times Summer Academy opportunity
The School of the New York Times Summer Academy is one of the nation’s most competitive journalism programs – and Quill and Scroll members get an exclusive discount. ($500 off and refer/bring a friend incentives).
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 2026 school year). Students must be 15-years old by the first day of their session. Program graduates have been recruited from some of the top journalism schools in the nation. Please see this link for the course catalogue.
All students applying to Summer Academy for the first time are required to complete an online application. Returning students do not need to reapply. As a member school, Quill and Scroll chapter members receive priority enrollment.
Additionally, the winning entries from our News Writer of the Year (Category 16 in Quill and Scroll’s Writing, Visual, Multimedia Contest) are eligible to compete for a School of the New York Times scholarship to its Summer Academy. This scholarship (valued at $7,500) includes room and board but not transportation to New York City. Student entries will be evaluated by faculty from the New York Times.
To unlock your member benefits and request your Quill & Scroll discount, please click here.
Spring convention registration closes, but on-site registration still available
If you just decided to attend, you can register onsite for the JEA/NSPA National High School Journalism Convention in Minneapolis.
Attendees can look forward to hundreds of informational sessions. Come “Find your North Star” at the JEA/NSPA spring convention April 16-18. The Hilton Garden Inn, which is next to the Convention Center, can be reserved using this link until April 1.
Quill and Scroll will celebrate its centennial year at the Thursday evening adviser reception.
Gloria Shields NSPA Media Workshop
Dallas hosts one of the nation’s largest (and hottest) summer journalism workshops, June 29-July 2.
The temperatures and the ideas will sizzle in Dallas at the Gloria Shields NSPA Media Workshop.
Registration will open on March 2 for the 2026 workshop, set for June 26-July 2 at the Hilton Richardson Dallas.
The registration fee is $140 per student and adviser. The optional Sunday evening bonus class is $20 for those arriving early.
Check the workshop website frequently for updates as workshop plans are finalized. NSPA will send an email when workshop registration and hotel reservations open.
Free speech forum opportunity
FIRE is hosting its third annual Free Speech Forum, a free, week-long summer program in Washington, D.C., taking place June 21-27.
During the program, students will:
- Learn about the First Amendment and the principles of free speech
- Participate in interactive workshops and debates
- Develop public speaking and advocacy skills
- Connect with fellow students from across the country who share an interest in free speech
- Hear from leading free speech advocates and experts
The program is completely free, including housing, meal and all programming. Students in grades 9-11 simply need to apply. Applications are due March 30.
Find more information and the application here: https://www.fire.org/free-speech-forum
Upcoming Weekly Scroll pause dates
We will pause the Weekly Scroll during the weeks of April 13 and April 20 since we will be at conventions when we normally would amass the Scroll.
Some advisers and students have found linking to our Weekly Scroll page beneficial.
We will publish our final Weekly Scroll May 4. We will resume publishing next fall in early to mid September.
Thank you for understanding.
Just a thought
Happy Founder’s Day four days early!
Founder’s Day isn’t until April 10, but we didn’t want to wait.
Quill and Scroll was organized April 10, 1926, at the University of Iowa by George H. Gallup and a group of high school advisers. Their purpose was to encourage and recognize individual student achievement in journalism and scholastic media.
Yes, that happened 100 years ago. Next year, we will be celebrating the centennial at the Spring JEA/NSPA Spring Convention in Minneapolis. We can’t wait to celebrate with you!
It’s been an honor to be part of Quill and Scroll. I would love to hear from you about what you would like us to offer in the near future. If you have ideas or needs that Quill and Scroll may be able to help with, please let me know.
Thank you for all you do to help your Quill and Scroll Chapter be successful. May we all search and embody for the lights of truth, learning, leadership, loyalty, initiative, integrity, judgment and friendship.
— Lori Keekley
