MIPA would like to announce Morgan Said, the senior editor-in-chief of The Dart newspaper and DartNewsOnline.com at St. Teresa’s Academy in Kansas City, as the Missouri Student Journalist of the Year.

Through a surprise announcement in front of her classmates and family, St. Teresa’s Academy senior Morgan Said found out that she had been named Missouri Student Journalist of the Year 2011 Monday, March 21, 2011.  The award, sponsored by the Missouri Interscholastic Press Association, will be formally presented at an awards ceremony at the University of Missouri April 5.

Morgan serves as editor-in-chief of St. Teresa’s print newspaper, The Dart, and the school’s online new site, DartNewsOnline.  In the summer of 2010, Morgan helped start DartNewsOnline, which won the coveted Pacemaker award from the National Scholastic Press Association, placing it in the top 20 student news websites in the nation.

In a letter of nomination, her newspaper adviser Eric Thomas wrote, “In my nine years of teaching at St. Teresa’s, after teaching hundreds of students, after dozens of yearbook and newspaper editors-in-chief, I have never been more proud of a student than I am of Morgan Said.  When challenged, she directs her energy into the soul of the publication: helping others.  When others might wilt from both exhaustion and frustration, Morgan keeps creating excellence for her staff.”

Under Morgan’s leadership, in November 2011, the online and print publications earned three Best in Show awards at the NSPA convention in Kansas City.  STA publications had never before won any Best in Show awards from NSPA.

During her three years on staff, Morgan has earned staff, regional and state awards for individual work in photography, video and writing.  For the print version of the paper she writes “300 words,” a series of profiles of St. Teresa’s personalities and their defining moments.  In summer 2010, Morgan won an award for leadership at the Ball State Summer Journalism Workshops.

In winning the Missouri contest, Morgan’s entry will advance to the judging for national journalist of the year.  The announcement of that award, and the accompanying $5,000 possible scholarship, occurs at the NSPA/JEA Convention in Anaheim, Calif. on April 16.

Morgan intends to major in strategic communications at the University of Kansas.