When cherubs walked into the lesson on AP Style, no one expected one of their own would leave a champion.
Instructors Mary Lou Song and Joe Grimm opened their AP style lesson like any other, with cherubs taking notes as they reviewed the basics. Surprised that none of the students had their own AP stylebooks, Professor Roger Boye provided copies for all 90 cherubs.
“It’s a basic critical reference for journalists, and it’s loaded with information that goes beyond style,” Boye said. “You can find it in virtually every newsroom in the country.”
Cherubs piled on top of each other to get first pick of the fresh Associated Press stylebooks on the stage. Once they returned to their seats, Song announced they would compete to be the “Last Cherub Standing.”
The budding journalists were given a quiz they were expected to finish in 15 minutes. Song read the answers aloud, and cherubs who had them correct remained standing. The others trickled back down into their seats.
To keep the energy up, Grimm tossed candy into the crowd. Eventually, two remained standing.
“People were cheering,” finalist Molly Kurtzer-Ellenbogen, of Washington, D.C., said. “A lot of them were cheering because we were throwing candy at them, but people were very supportive.”
In the end, Logan Syzmanski, of Edwardsville, Illinois, edged out Kurtzer-Ellenbogen on a question about how to write “July Fourth” in AP Style.
“I was pumping my fist at the end,” Syzmanski said, referring to the moment he realized he had won. “It was great.”
