Three La Salle student journalists have been named as national finalists for the highly competitive NSPA Individual Awards annual contest for their work in The Falconer, the student-run school newspaper.

The National Scholastic Press Association has recognized Kayah Cieslak '26, Rowan Bienapfl '25, and Rita Tran '25 for two stories published in the spring of 2024.

In the Story of the Year: Opinion category, Kayah Cieslak '26 has been named as a finalist for her piece, “Pity, Alienation, and The Urge To Be the Same: The Never Ending Plight of a Physical Disability.” Penned in the first person, the article serves as a personal narrative and call to action in which Cieslak illustrates the impact that hemiplegic cerebral palsy, a physical motor disability, has had on each stage of her life.

Cieslak was originally inspired to share her story after attending the National High School Journalism Convention (NHSJC) last year. “I was like, ‘I want to be able to be vulnerable because I finally have the platform where my voice will matter,’” said Cieslak. “[NHSJC] kind of inspired me to take that step and be vulnerable because there are so many people who are like me, who are also student journalists.”

With this nomination, Cieslak’s article will meet a much larger audience. “I think what I really wanted with this piece and my goal in writing it was that people would be more empathetic and more sensitive,” she said.

Equally as important is the personal impact of the article. “I think it was kind of cathartic because it allowed me to, like, express all the things that I had felt for the longest time,” said Cieslak. “I think overall the impact was positive because it allowed me to come to terms with things that I hadn't really had time to consider thoroughly the way that I did in this piece. So I would say I definitely am now a more confident person because of it.” 

In the Digital Story of the Year: Blog category, Rowan Bienapfl '25 and Rita Tran '25 were named finalists for their piece, “Let’s Talk, Period.” Driven by their shared passion for menstrual education, this article is the first to be co-authored by Bienapfl and Tran, a collaboration which has proven incredibly successful.

"I initially had the idea, and it was mostly because it was National Women's Month,” said Tran. “I know in my family periods are very hushed about, and I'm a family of four girls … It's just like a taboo topic. I feel like just our society in general needs more education, and I knew that Rowan was also pretty passionate about periods because we've had these discussions since we're friends.”

With the larger platform that this nomination will provide, Bienapfl and Tran hope to empower young women and people who experience periods, “so that they don't feel so ashamed of a perfectly natural and normal bodily function,” Bienapfl explained. Expanding menstrual education in Catholic schools serves as another important goal for both writers. “We cannot control this,” Bienapfl put simply. “So let's learn about it.” 

Read both of these stories and more from The Falconer, La Salle's award-winning student newspaper, at lasallefalconer.com