Students who served on the editorial staff of the 2010-'11 issue of Calliope, the D-E student literary magazine, were given the distinctive honor recently of receiving a prestigious  Silver Crown Award from the Columbia Scholastic Press Association.

A total of 1,351 newspapers, magazines, and yearbooks published during the 2010-'11 academic year were eligible in the 2012 Crown Awards program.  The grand total of 204 Crowns consists of (only) 56 magazines, 56 newspapers, and 92 yearbooks.  The 2011 editorial staff of Calliope, which included Michelle Aboodi '12, Nicole Brosnan '12, Victoria Ngo '12, and Serena Solin '12, were recognized along with their faculty advisor and D-E Librarian Steve Petkus, at the 88th annual CSPA's Spring Convention at Columbia University in New York.

Aboodi noted, "Having the opportunity to receive the (Silver Crown) and attend the ceremony was a rewarding and beneficial experience. At the award ceremony, we were able to see parts of other newspapers, yearbooks, and literary magazines. Coming together to see these other works, gave us new ideas to improve our magazine. The evaluation from the judges helps us throughout the process of creating the magazine this year. We look to their comments to better the layout and the content of Calliope. We hope to continue to progress as a notable and unique magazine!"

Steve Petkus shared this enthusiastic comment: "I'm totally thrilled for Michelle, Nicole, Victoria, and Serena, for all staff members on last year's magazine, and for all the students whose original writing and art appeared in the 2011 issue. In its 54-year history, Calliope has received a handful of national Crown awards, the most recent dating to the mid-1990s. This Silver Crown honors the truly vibrant tradition of innovative art and writing we have at D-E."

For a link to the online CSPA magazine "In Their Voices" -- which includes two excerpts of work in the Silver Crown Award-winning 2011 Calliope -- click here.