Two Pine Needle newspaper editors notched first place in writing at the Society of Professional Journalists Region 2 Competition on Saturday, April 18.
Sean Hancock won the Breaking News Reporting category for his piece on Lumbee recognition titled “Opposition Dubbed Casino Cartel.”
Michela Gritti topped the Feature Writing category for her article, “A Journey of Hope: Abdullah’s Story from Gaza to Pembroke.”
The Pine Needle newspaper was a finalist for the Corbin Gwaltney Award for Best All-Around Student Newspaper.
The Pine Needle is in the SPJ Region 2, which encompasses North Carolina, Virginia, Delaware, D.C., and Maryland. The Pine Needle competes in the small schools’ division (under 10k students).
The first-place regional winners advance to the national competition in Columbus, Ohio, in October.