Junior Dhanveer Gill was awarded first place in editorial writing within his division following April 1’s Illinois High School Association (IHSA) sectionals competition.

Gill will now represent West Chicago Community High School at the state level on April 21 at Heartland Community College in Normal, IL.

Gill is in his first year as a journalism student; in that time, he has demonstrated growth and a commitment to the program, working his way up to Opinions Editor, a position he currently holds. Gill has twice been named Reporter of the Week, and he is a Best of SNO winner as well.

Most recently, Gill was part of the editorial team which was awarded a blue ribbon from the Northern Illinois Scholastic Press Association for their article “Excessive Social Media Use: Dangerous for Teenagers”.

Now, this award-winning student will compete against the top journalists in the state.

The newspaper is in its second year under the advisership of English teacher Leslie Fireman.

“Dhanveer is a skilled reporter who knows this particular category of journalistic writing well. I am incredibly proud of his achievements so far, and I, along with all of West Chicago Community High School, look forward to cheering him on next week,” Fireman said.