| August 2005 | |
Teen columnist beats journalists twice her ageBrackett News writer wins 1st, again By Pauline Word Shanae Simmons is only 18 but she’s already better than writers more than twice her age. And she’s got the hardware to prove it. Three judges in three different states have declared her a winner. This June, for the second consecutive year, the recent high school graduate won first place in column writing for small weeklies in TPA’s Better Newspaper Contest. And when Simmons was only 15 she also won second place in column writing, giving her newspaper The Brackett News 75 points in route to the 2003 division 10 sweepstakes award. Publisher Jewell Robinson recalls the day several years ago when a shy girl clutching a piece of paper came into the newspaper office. “She was shuffling around from one foot to another and her grandmother finally prodded her and said ‘Shanae wants to ask you something,’” Robinson said. “She had … something she’d written and about three paragraphs down I was practically in tears. She really has a way of expressing things. And I’m really proud of her.” Robinson said Simmons was a “very multi-talented” girl who also has performed in community theater and excelled in sports. So how does this young girl feel about winning a statewide newspaper contest and beating out men and women who were in the business before she was born? “It’s really exciting. (Writing) was just a hobby but I didn’t think I would get anything for it,” Simmons said. Simmons started as a regular columnist for the News when she was a sophomore at Brackett high school, penning the Teen Spirit column. The first column she wrote dealt with racial allegations at the school alleged by LULAC officials who claimed that coaches were treating some students unfairly, she said. “I didn’t think there were (racial problems),” Simmons said. Simmons was shocked when the column and subsequent pieces started a community dialog. “It was a rush feeling that I had made an impact,” she said. “So after that (writing) was an outlet for me to express myself.” Her columns also vaulted her name and face to the forefront of Brackettville residents. Newspaper readers would recognize her on the street and tell her they totally disagreed with her opinions but really enjoyed her writing. “I’m pretty famous in Brackettville,” she said. But that fame also extends beyond the small South Texas town. After Simmons won her first first place in the 2004 TPA contest she was interviewed by a Washington Post reporter who was writing a story on crushes. Simmons’ winning column “Crushing a Crush” had been reprinted in TPA’s Winners’ Circle contest tab, which was distributed to members and posted on the association Web site. Simmons is still giddy when asked about being quoted and having excerpts of something she wrote appear in one of the nation’s largest newspapers. “I was in the Washington Post!” she said. She is preparing to enter the University of Texas in Austin this fall pre-med with aspirations of possibly being a pediatrician, although she hasn’t completed decided on a career path and enjoys acting and entertaining as well. She also is considering applying for The Daily Texan staff. Robinson has asked Simmons if she wants to continue submitting columns to the News while at UT and their publisher-columnist relationship is likely to continue. “She’s just amazing to me,” Robinson said. |
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