Minnehaha Academy Graduate's Podcast On School Explosion Recognized By The New York Times

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) - A Minnehaha Academy graduate turned tragedy into storytelling through her podcast "August 2nd Stories."

The New York Times recognized Emma Melling as a top ten winner out of over 700 submissions for the newspaper's first annual student podcast contest.

Her podcast features interviews with people who were at the scene of the Upper School gas explosion at Minnehaha Academy last summer.

Two people died.

"The main inspiration for the project came from an interview that I had done with John Carlson, who was the custodian that died in the explosion," said Melling. "I went back and I found the audio file of that interview, and just listening to his voice again was a reminder of how powerful audio storytelling can be."

The winning podcasts will be featured on the Learning Network.

To listen to "August 2nd Stories" here.