With spring’s commencement comes the annual Columbia Scholastic Press Association (CSPA) Spring Convention. Juniors of the Inkblot edit board headed to Columbia University in New York City to participate, departing from the Red Bank train station on the morning of March 20. Students spent the two-day trip hearing from professors and journalists from around the U.S.

Junior and in-depth editor Isabella Antoon of Oceanport spent her time at the conference preparing for the coming year.

“I got a bunch of ideas and inspiration on how we can continue to improve the paper,” Antoon said.

Junior and features editor Evan Kuo of Tinton Falls listened to a variety of speakers, including news reporter Lisa Rosa. Rosa’s seminar taught student editors how to choose stories relevant to their community.

“It was really useful because it helped me get perspective on what kind of stories I should assign as an editor in order to cater to the Inkblot’s audience,” Kuo said.

After leaving the university on Wednesday, the group had dinner at Bella Napoli and toured the city. They stayed overnight at the New York Manhattan Hotel, and by 7:30 a.m. on Thursday, they were back on the Columbia campus.

Once the convention concluded, the group departed from Penn Station. They arrived in Red Bank at 6:15 p.m.

Junior and assistant sports editor Meredith Prud’homme of Ocean Township said she enjoyed the CSPA convention.

“All the sessions were informative and from a variety of speakers from around the country,” Prud’homme said. “The campus was beautiful and walking around with the junior edit board really made this trip amazing.”