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As a student journalist from Omaha, Nebraska, if you had told me I would have the opportunity to ask Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth questions, I would’ve called you crazy. But last week, that was my reality.

I applied for the United States Senate Youth Program on a whim, figuring the students in Nebraska who want to be the next president would beat me for a spot. Nevertheless, I wrote the essays, completed the application and advanced to the final interview round with 15 others. I thought I bombed that interview. I spoke less about politics and more about how I wanted the opportunity, as a journalist, to understand what covering politics is actually like.

Turns out, to my surprise, I didn’t bomb it. A few weeks later, I was selected as one of two students to represent Nebraska in Washington, D.C. for a week, where I toured the Pentagon, Supreme Court, White House and Senate offices, earned a $12,500 scholarship, and worked alongside some of the brightest student leaders in the country.

I won’t lie, Washington Week was intimidating. We heard from a FEMA director, a former astronaut and NASA administrator, U.S. senators, nonprofit leaders, and countless others working to make a difference in our country and world. But more than that, it showed me what it means to be in the room, to listen carefully, think critically, and ask questions that matter.

The USSYP reinforced both my hope for the future and my responsibility within it. It reminded me that journalism isn’t dead; in fact, it’s needed now more than ever. And now, I know how to ask the hard questions, and I plan to spend my career doing exactly that. I hope I’ll make it back to those rooms I was so lucky to be in.

Of course, I brought my camera, so check out some photos of Washington Week here!

Hear more about my USSYP journey on KETV here.

Since sixth grade, I’ve dreamed of calling myself a Boston Terrier, and now that dream is a reality. I’m officially a member of Boston University’s Class of 2030, where I’ll study journalism at one of the top programs in the country.

After years of working toward this moment, there’s a weight lifted off my shoulders in knowing that the place that has felt like home for so long is now officially mine. 

I’m excited to contribute to the innovative and unique media landscape at BU and in Boston and to keep leveling up my storytelling. Go Terriers!

2026 - In my first-period journalism class on March 5, I received a call from Erica Brockmoller, Nebraska State Director of the Journalism Education Association, informing me that I had won the Nebraska Journalist of the Year.

I would be lying if I said I haven’t wanted this for my entire high school career.

A few days after I won a gold medal as a freshman, my former journalism adviser, Mr. Kaldahl, sat me down and said I needed to start thinking about Journalist of the Year. At the time, 99% of my brain thought he was crazy, considering I thought I had beginner's luck and I wasn’t even eligible for the award for three more years; however, the other 1% of my brain knew if he believed in me, I had to go for it. 

So I worked for it. Every time I wanted to give up on a story, take the easy way out or settle for something less, I remembered that conversation. If someone believed in me when I was a freshman, I sure wasn’t going to give up when I was older, stronger and tougher. 

I spent the entirety of last summer split between college essays and my portfolio. By December, I finally felt confident enough in it. When I submitted it for the state-level competition, I didn’t want to win for the title or the prize; I wanted to win for Kaldahl, for my current adviser, Ranae Duncan, who also played a massive role in getting me this, and most importantly, for my staff of best friends who celebrated every award, big or small. This is their award more so than it is mine.

I don’t want my legacy to be Madeline Petrick: Journalist of the Year. I want it to be that a Wingspan staff member reached that level, and that more will follow. I know I won’t be the last.

Now, I look ahead to the national competition. In the 41-year history of the award, no student from Nebraska has ever won at the national level. I don’t take that lightly, but I also don’t see it as a limitation. I see it as an opportunity. I hope I can make Nebraska proud and represent the state and the journalism community that has given me so much.

Thank you to the Nebraska High School Press Association and Journalism Education Association for this insanely cool honor. I’m beyond grateful and ready for whatever comes next. See you in Minneapolis!