The Michigan Interscholastic Press Association today honored Novi High School teacher Lydia C. Cadena with its 2015 Golden Pen Award.
Cadena was honored at MIPA’s Spring Awards and On-Site Contests in Lansing, along with nearly 2,500 contest winners in the organization’s statewide scholastic journalism contest.
The Golden Pen is the highest award MIPA bestows on a student media adviser and has been bestowed continuously since 1952. Teachers must be nominated by their students, who assemble an extensive portfolio showcasing the teacher’s involvement in scholastic journalism activities and the impact he or she has had on current and past students.
The recipient is chosen by a committee of previous Golden Pen honorees.
“Lydia Cadena clearly is among the best journalism advisers in Michigan,” said Jeremy Steele, executive director of MIPA and a faculty member in the Michigan State University School of Journalism. “Student media advisers not only help their students become critical thinkers, excellent writers and outstanding visual communicators, they guide students to develop their own voice so that they can be active, engaged members of the community.”
Cadena has advised Novi High School’s yearbook, Reflections, since 1997 and the school’s student newspaper, The Wildcat Roar, since 2001. The Wildcat Roar has received a Spartan Award, MIPA’s highest rating for a student media outlet, in nine of the past 10 years. The newspaper was inducted into MIPA’s Hall of Fame this year in recognition of this long-standing tradition of excellence.
In addition, she has been an instructor at the MIPA Summer Journalism Workshop at Michigan State University and is a frequent presenter at MIPA conferences. She was name Novi Community Schools teacher of the year in 2011.
“The best teachers truly love what they do, and teaching comes almost effortlessly to Ms. Cadena,” Novi students Jennifer Hepp and Brittani Kiel, editors-in-chief of The Wildcat Roar, wrote in their nomination of Cadena. “Because of this, she has tremendously influenced the lives of countless students, regardless of whether or not they continued with journalism beyond high school. Ms. Cadena’s professionalism, leadership and character are an extraordinary asset to Novi High School, and she deserves more than anything to be recognized for her exemplary teaching.”
ABOUT THE MICHIGAN INTERSCHOLASTIC PRESS ASSOCIATION
Founded in 1921 and housed in the Michigan State University School of Journalism, the Michigan Interscholastic Press Association is a nonprofit organization composed of scholastic journalism teachers and publications advisers and their students. MIPA is committed to promoting and recognizing excellence in scholastic journalism at all levels through education, training and support of student journalists and their advisers.