Hot off the Press: Journalism Honors for Kira Ratan

11/6/2020

The National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA) along with the Society of Professional Journalists and the Society for New Design have honored Kira Ratan ’22 for “outstanding COVID-19 coverage by high school media.”

Ratan’s winning article, “Stay-at-Home Orders Lead to Soaring Screen Time Levels for Students,” earned second-place accolades in the General Content Online category and was first published in The Masters School’s student newspaper, Tower, on Thursday, April 30. “It's a very big honor. Journalism is my passion, and recognition from the NSPA was affirming in what I hope to pursue in the future!” Ratan said.

The timely story was also featured on The Hudson Independent website where Ratan has been working as an intern and contributor for about a year, garnering seven bylined stories under her belt. The internship at the monthly Westchester County newspaper along with her recent experience as web editor and social media manager at Tower have sharpened her skills. “I've learned how to craft thoughtful stories, find new angles for articles, work on a quick deadline, and just developed a love for writing articles and being a journalist.”

Ratan credits Masters with her enthusiasm for the profession. “I've always loved writing, but I don't think I really knew what I wanted to be until about eighth grade. Ms. Cowhey came to the Middle School to give a presentation about Tower, and I think that's when I knew being a journalist seemed like a pretty exciting career,” Ratan said.