2017 Yearbook Pacemaker Finalists announced

MINNEAPOLIS — The nation’s top scholastic yearbooks were recognized today by the National Scholastic Press Association who announced 55 finalists in its annual Pacemaker competition.

The Pacemaker is the association’s preeminent award,” said Laura Widmer, executive director. “NSPA is honored to recognize the best of the best with Pacemaker honors.”

The NSPA Pacemaker award, one of the oldest awards for scholastic journalism, has a rich tradition. The association began presenting the prestigious award to high school newspapers soon after the organization was founded in 1921. Throughout the years, yearbooks, magazines, online sites and broadcast programs were added to the competition.

In all, 525 yearbooks entered the Pacemaker competition. Two teams of three judges devoted two days to the judging and studied every entry discussing its strengths. The status of each yearbook entry was agreed upon by at least two of the three judges.

When the process was finished, the 55 finalists were named indicating the top 10 percent. From that group, 24 will earn the Pacemaker award placing those publications in the top five percent. Seven junior high/middle schools are included on the finalist list.

Insights and observations from the judges about the Pacemaker-winning yearbooks will be posted when the winners are announced along with the names and professional bios of the judges.

In addition to demonstrating excellence in key areas including coverage, writing, editing, design and photography, the winning yearbooks took risks and told the story of the school year with a strong verbal and visual voice.

“The best yearbooks don’t recap events, they capture dynamic and authentic stories that focus on people,” said Gary Lundgren, associate director. “Today’s best yearbooks are remarkable journalistic publications with their own bold personalities.”

Pacemaker finalists will be recognized and the Pacemaker winners will be announced at the JEA/NSPA Spring National High School Journalism Convention, April 12-15, 2018 in San Francisco.



Hornet

Bryant High School
Bryant, Arkansas
Adviser: Lisa Stine
Editors: Lauren Brantley, Gracen Goudy, Ashley Spann, Helen Woodham


Titanium

Antelope High School
Antelope, California
Adviser: Pete LeBlanc
Editors: Manreet Jhattu, Jane Miller


Jamboree

Toby Johnson Middle School
Elk Grove, California
Adviser: Laura Zhu
Editors: Alena Chanthavong, Michelle Escudero


Decamhian

Del Campo High School
Fair Oaks, California
Adviser: James Jordan
Editors: Tayleigh Greene, Isabelle Kiteck, Ashley Krause, Megan Saunders


Ursus

Granite Bay High School
Granite Bay, California
Adviser: Bernadette Crammer
Editor: Selena Da La Torre


Farrier

Mirman School
Los Angeles, California
Adviser: Wendy Samson
Editor: Emerson Oertel


Wingspan

James C. Enochs High School
Modesto, California
Adviser: Tamra McCarthy
Editor: Kristy Kelland


Rampages

Casa Roble High School
Orangevale, California
Adviser: Dan Austin
Editors: Portia Mansanet, Riley Peterson, Amanda Worthington


Wings

Arrowhead Christian Academy
Redlands, California
Adviser: Crystal Kazmierski
Editors: Christine Hysell, Michaela Miller, Susan Wang


Pilot

Redondo Union High School
Redondo Beach, California
Adviser: Mitch Ziegler
Editors: Lauryn Alejo, Alysa Kataoka, Matthew Yonemura


Cayuse

Walnut High School
Walnut, California
Adviser: Rebecca Chai
Editors: Emily Chen, Cynthia Lu, Jason Luna, Sean Wang


Summit

Smoky Hill High School
Aurora, Colorado
Adviser: Carrie Faust
Editor: Emily Wise


Calumet

Arapahoe High School
Centennial, Colorado
Adviser: Greg Anderson
Editors: Sarah Cherin, Allison Swomley


The Nighthawk

Rocky Heights Middle School
Littleton, Colorado
Adviser: Tim Ryckman
Editors: Katie Cranston, Izzy Holsman


Westwind

Lewis-Palmer High School
Monument, Colorado
Adviser: Carrie Hendrix
Editor: Chloe Bender


Eagle Eye View

Sierra Middle School
Parker, Colorado
Adviser: Jed Palmer
Editors: Grace Stebbins, Bryn Valdez


Tigrium

Holy Trinity Episcopal Academy
Melbourne, Florida
Adviser: Sarah Tricano
Editors: Sarah Braddock, Hannah Lee


Panther

H.B. Plant High School
Tampa, Florida
Adviser: Christina Porcelli-Wilson
Editors: Amy Hall, Maddie Johnson, Hope Kurth


Etruscan

Glenbrook South High School
Glenview, Illinois
Adviser: Brenda Field
Editors: Alisha Gillani, Julia Nakashima


Red and Black

Lawrence High School
Lawrence, Kansas
Adviser: Barbara Tholen
Editors: Allie Fischer, Kate Rettig


Indian

Shawnee Mission North High School
Overland Park, Kansas
Adviser: Becky Tate
Editors: Morgan Cole, Mariana Orrego


Hauberk

Shawnee Mission East High School
Prairie Village, Kansas
Adviser: Dow Tate
Editors: Emory Foster, Hope Hess, Katie Kuhlman


The Lair

Shawnee Mission Northwest High School
Shawnee, Kansas
Adviser: Susan Massy
Editors: Tess Holcom


Echo

Grand Blanc High School
Grand Blanc, Michigan
Adviser: Ava Butzu
Editors: Kayla Mayer, Vanessa Zavala


Le Flambeau

Notre Dame de Sion High School
Kansas City, Missouri
Adviser: Alison Long
Editors: Chloe Long, Marie Orrick


Tesserae

Corning-Painted Post High School
Corning, New York
Advisers: Katie Paulison-Harris, Mike Simons
Editors: Ashlyn Amsden, Aimee Apisak, Tommy Lynch


Westwind

West Henderson High School
Hendersonville, North Carolina
Adviser: Brenda Gorsuch
Editors: Dallis Guilliams, Daniel Ippolito, Elizabeth O’Donnell, Skylar Smith, Samantha Wilkie


Panthera Pardus

Stigler Public Schools
Stigler, Oklahoma
Adviser: Mitchell Bird
Editor: Victoria Underwood


Lion’s Roar

Christ Presbyterian Academy
Nashville, Tennessee
Adviser: Heather Nagel
Editors: Grace Garrett, A.J. Thomas


Lone Star

James Bowie High School
Austin, Texas
Adviser: Deanna Dellana
Editors: Carlyn Crow, Mariana Medina, Samantha Robarts


The Highlander

Highland Park High School
Dallas, Texas
Adviser: Margie Raper
Editors: Juliette Campbell, Emily Greaves, Amanda Hodak, Calli Maroulis, Avery Mercurio, Field Parsons, Elle Powers, E.C. Stanzel, Maddie Stevenson


Cornerstones

The Hockaday School
Dallas, Texas
Adviser: Ana Rosenthal
Editors: Cameron Blotcky, Carolina Campbell


Marksmen

St. Mark’s School of Texas
Dallas, Texas
Adviser: Ray Westbrook
Editor: Andrew Lin


Hoofbeats

Burges High School
El Paso, Texas
Adviser: Patricia Monroe
Editor: Jasmine Tabler


The View

Timberview Middle School
Fort Worth, Texas
Adviser: Jennifer Bass
Editors: Kira Satterwhite, Emerson Senne


Buffalo

Haltom High School
Haltom City, Texas
Adviser: Emily Pyeatt Arnold
Editor: Danielle Robinson


The Belltower

St. Thomas’ Episcopal School
Houston, Texas
Adviser: David Graves
Editors: Eli Melendrez, Marilia Sampaio, Calvin Wong


Specifics

Seven Lakes Junior High School
Katy, Texas
Adviser: Katie Frazier
Editor: Paige Henricks


Legacy

Klein Collins High School
Klein, Texas
Adviser: Ashley Hildebrandt
Editor: Taylor Confer


The Arena

Legacy High School
Mansfield, Texas
Advisers: Rachel Dearinger, Leland Mallett
Editors: Ashley Owen, Anna Roberts


The Lion

McKinney High School
McKinney, Texas
Adviser: Alyssa Boehringer
Editors: Nicole Oesterreicher, Anne Penprase, Nicole Stuessy


Touchstone

Stony Point High School
Round Rock, Texas
Adviser: Rebecca Plumley
Editors: Kaylie Yingling


Tiger

Texas High School
Texarkana, Texas
Advisers: Rebecca Potter, Clint Smith
Editors: Marley Crawford, Hannah Hayes, Linley Murdock, Cathryn Payne


El Paisano

Westlake High School
Austin, Texas
Adviser: Alison Strelitz
Editors: Lily Painter, Audrey Sutter


The Lair

Lake Braddock Secondary School
Burke, Virginia
Adviser: Benjamin Sellers
Editors: Shannon Browning, Shivani Bajaj, Emma Baker, Maddy Sita


Odyssey

Chantilly High School
Chantilly, Virginia
Adviser: Mary Kay Downes
Editors: Joanna Cabalquinto, Julia Gasse, Katherine Wu


Above and Beyond

Robinson Secondary School
Fairfax, Virginia
Adviser: Pat Hinman
Editors: Bella Beckler, Chloe Denelsbeck, Mary Kate Foley, Amy Jeong, Jen Marchibroda


Saltshaker

Trinity Christian School
Fairfax, Virginia
Adviser: Emily Lubenec
Editors: Lillian Holley, Sejean Yang


Columbian

George C. Marshall High School
Falls Church, Virginia
Adviser: Sam Hedenberg
Editors: Carolina McCabe, Kristin Metzger


The Buzzer

Brookville High School
Lynchburg, Virginia
Adviser: Brett Hastie
Editor: Maddie Martin


The Clan

McLean High School
McLean, Virginia
Adviser: Meghan Percival
Editors: Kaylin Harrington, Ramneek Hazrah, Samantha Kidd, Sami Lawrence, Natalie Luu, Alana McBane


The Legend

Atlee High School
Mechanicsville, Virginia
Adviser: Heidi Craft
Editors: Hannah Craft, Kameron Phillips, Claire Scott


Saga

Loudoun Valley High School
Purcellville, Virginia
Adviser: Martha Akers
Editors: Samantha Hinton, Grace Mussmon, Anna Rizvi


Laconian

Salem High School
Salem, Virginia
Adviser: Katie Lewis
Editors: Issac Robertson, Rachel Torian


The Legacy

Potomac Falls High School
Sterling, Virginia
Adviser: Emily Everett
Editors: Jasmine Ayazi, Molly DeCarli, Caroline Heckman, Rachel Rossman, Samantha Son