The Northern Illinois School Press Association (NISPA) awarded LION the Golden Eagle trophy for journalistic excellence at the College of Du Page on Friday, April 24. The website also received a Gold Certificate, and many staffers also received awards for their writing and design.

The staff submits three consecutive issues for the NISPA judges in January, as well as many separate stories and graphics to be judged individually.

Claire Quinlan ‘15 received a Blue Ribbon in the Features category for her profile on Josie Dunne ‘15. Mike Flaherty ‘15 received a blue ribbon for his ad design “Advertise with LION.” Will Most ‘15 received a Blue Ribbon for his personal column on Jack Kunkle, and an Honorable Mention for his editorial “Feud with Ferguson.” Brittany Grosser-Basile ‘15 received an Honorable Mention for her story about the Kelli O’Laughlin trial in the News category. Gillian Dunlop ‘15 received an Honorable Mention for her wrestling photos in Issue 3. Bailey Blum ’16 received an Honorable Mention in the Sports category for his athlete profile on Aaron Onion ‘16. Riley Carroll ‘15, Claire Quinlan ‘15, Lidia Breen ‘15 and Izy Scott ‘16 received an Honorable Mention for their collective work on the design of the two page spread about Chipotle in Issue 3. The entire LION staff received an Honorable Mention in the Team in-depth category for the Church League season preview in Issue 3. Anika Ranginani ‘15 received a Blue Ribbon for her interactive food pyramid graphic that appeared on the website in September. Amy Lacny ‘16 received a Blue Ribbon for her breaking news story about Mr. Freeze performing at LT.