Kelsey Sweet, a senior at Londonderry High School, has written for the student newspaper, The Lancer Spirit, for the past three years. Courtesy photo/The Lancer Spirit

LONDONDERRY – Kelsey Sweet, a senior at Londonderry High School, has certainly had a lasting impact on the school’s journalism program.

After winning the prestigious Brodsky Prize less than a year ago, Sweet was named the New Hampshire High School Journalist of the Year by the Journalism Education Association.

She is the third student from New Hampshire to win the award. The other two winners include Elizabeth Sosa in 2025 and Kelly Egan in 2024, both of whom are Londonderry High graduates.

Sweet got her start in journalism during her sophomore year as a reporter for the student newspaper, The Lancer Spirit.

“I remember my first day in journalism, how excited I was to try something new,” she said. “Once I finished my first year, I truly gained an understanding of what it looks like to create a news publication.”

Kelsey Sweet, a senior at Londonderry High School, was recently named the New Hampshire High School Journalist of the Year. Courtesy photo/Instagram

Sweet said her years writing for the newspaper have been a combination of stress, education — and having the time of her life.

In April 2025, she had the opportunity to attend the two-day Harvard Crimson Journalism Summit.

“After that weekend, I was certain that studying journalism in college would be my plan,” she said, adding that she has attended similar conferences at Columbia University and Boston University. “As far as career aspirations, there are so many facets in the field of journalism, I’m sure you’ll find me in one of them.”

Some of her bigger stories for The Lancer Spirit have included covering the structural damage to the gymnasium, which caused a schoolwide evacuation, and the College Board website crashing just as Advanced Placement exams were getting underway. She has also shed light on the Chemo Project and The Blue Star Lancers.

Going into her senior year as news chief, Sweet began working on a major story about Londonderry’s problem with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances.

“It has been a hard battle trying to find the resources for how to tackle it and do it correctly,” she said, adding that she is still working to complete that story.

Sweet also covered the controversy that arose from the founding of a Christian Club at Londonderry High and interviewed Michael Beeman, who ran the Boston Marathon for 49th time this year. Both stories were recognized by the highly selective Student News Organization Network.

“Journalism provided me with so many opportunities beyond writing in the classroom,” she said. “I learned how to create and maintain a daily online news source. It has been an invaluable learning opportunity.”

Mary DeWinkeleer, faculty advisor of The Lancer Spirit, commended Sweet for her tenacity when going after a story.

“Kelsey is very driven and hard-working, she is the kind of student who seems to be everywhere and who isn’t afraid to talk to anyone,” said DeWinkeleer. “She is able to cover a wide range of events, people and topics. I can’t wait to see all she will accomplish in her future.”

Sweet also said DeWinkeleer has been instrumental in helping her find her calling as a member of the press.

“If there is one thing that I have learned in the last three years, it is that my advisor, Mary DeWinkeleer, is gung-ho on the First Amendment,” she said. “I owe it to her because now I know my rights and no one can violate the marketplace of my ideas.”

Speaking about the profession itself, she said her heart lies in her ability to share human interest stories.

“Meeting people and listening to their stories, giving a voice to causes that impact our school community and even asking the hard questions to the administration,” said Sweet. “We live in an age with so much misinformation out there. I want to continue to be part of the solution by reporting timely, factual news and helping younger students learn to do the same.”

After being accepted into the 27 journalism programs that she applied to, Sweet will be attending Quinnipiac University in the fall.

“Quinnipiac is home, they offer a handful of ways to get involved in media and internship opportunities,” she said, adding that she was also accepted into the school’s 3+1 program, which gives students the opportunity to earn their MBA. “I learned quickly that my education is not based on the title of the school. What truly mattered were the accreditations and the opportunities I would receive when studying in this major.”