2017 Newspaper Pacemaker Finalists

MINNEAPOLIS — The National Scholastic Press Association has named 49 scholastic student newspapers and newsmagazines as 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.”

The NSPA Pacemaker award has a rich tradition and the association started presenting the award to high school newspapers a few years after the organization was founded in 1921. Throughout the years, yearbooks, magazines, online sites and broadcast programs were added to the competition.

The 49 Pacemaker finalists represent 21 states and England. California sets the pace with eight finalists.

In all, 275 student news publications entered the Pacemaker competition. Two teams of three judges devoted two days to the judging and studied every entry discussing its strengths and weaknesses.

In the first round of the competition, the news publications competed against those of similar types — tabloid newspaper, broadsheet newspaper, newsmagazine and junior high/middle school.

When the process was finished, the 49 Pacemaker finalists were named. From that group, 26 will earn the Pacemaker award placing those publications in the top 10 percent. Four middle school/junior high publications are included on the finalist list.

Insights and observations from the judges about the Pacemaker winning newspapers will be posted when the Pacemaker 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 newspapers took risks and served as a strong voice for its student audience.

“The best newspapers and newsmagazines didn’t just recap school activities and sporting events, they delivered tenacious in-depth reporting and impartial and objective coverage,” said Gary Lundgren, associate director.

Print news publications are thriving in high schools across the country, Lundgren said.

“We have noticed a steady shift to the newsmagazine format,” he said. “More and more schools are using online news sites for day to day reporting and publishing quarterly newsmagazines for in-depth, long-form storytelling.”

In 2017, approximately 98 of the print news publications entered used a newsmagazine format.

In this competition, only the print news product was judged. A separate NSPA 2017 Online Pacemaker competition recognized 38 online news sites in April. Several schools earned Pacemaker honors for both their print and online products.

Pacemaker finalists will be recognized and the Pacemaker winners will be announced at the JEA/NSPA Fall National High School Journalism Convention, Nov. 16-19 in Dallas.



CS Press
, Cactus Shadows High School
Cave Creek, Arizona
Editor: Alex Laggren
Advisers: Lori Hart, Robert Adamson


Titan Times
, Antelope High School
Antelope, California
Editor: Sara Bergeron
Adviser: Pete LeBlanc


El Estoque
, Monta Vista High School
Cupertino, California
Editors: Avni Prasad, Mingjie Zhong
Adviser: Julia Satterthwaite


The Town Crier
, Paul Revere Charter Middle School
Los Angeles, California
Adviser: Eric Wechsler


The Campanile
, Palo Alto Senior High School
Palo Alto, California
Editors: Peter Maroulis, Jacky Moore, Kai Oda, Ethan Teo, Jessica Wong
Advisers: Rodney Satterthwaite, Esther Wojcicki


Verde
, Palo Alto Senior High School
Palo Alto, California
Editors: Tara Madhav, Alicia Mies, Dani Macuil
Adviser: Paul Kandell


Eye of the Tiger
, Roseville High School
Roseville, California
Editors: Rachel Barber, Marc Chappelle
Adviser: Bobby Ritter


Bear Witness
, Branham High School
San Jose, California
Editors: Kelley Sheen, Julia Kolman
Adviser: Fitzgerald Vo


The Winged Post
, The Harker School
San Jose, California
Editors: Meilan Steimle, Kshithija Mulam
Adviser: Ellen Austin


The Herald
, Arapahoe High School
Centennial, Colorado
Editors: Paige Paulsen
Adviser: Greg Anderson


The Eagle Eye
, Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School
Parkland, Florida
Editors: Lily Skopp, Alexa Kravitz, Makayla Manning
Adviser: Melissa Falkowski


Red & Black
, Hillsborough High School
Tampa, Florida
Editors: Annie Aguiar, Bianca Cegatte
Advisers: Joe Humphrey, Jill Burns


The Portfolio
, Bak Middle School of the Arts
West Palm Beach, Florida
Editors: Anushka Lakum, Nikita Tanguturi
Adviser: Jessica Samons


Carpe Diem
, Decatur High School
Decatur, Georgia
Adviser: Jon Reese


The Northview Messenger
, Northview High School
Johns Creek, Georgia
Editors: Maggie Brenan, Tarun Ramesh
Adviser: Chris Yarbrough


U-High Midway
, University of Chicago Laboratory High School
Chicago, Illinois
Editors: Marissa Martinez, Clyde Schwab
Adviser: Logan Aimone


Drops of Ink
, Libertyville High School
Libertyville, Illinois
Editors: Manal Ahmed, Becky DeAcetis
Adviser: Michael Gluskin


HiLite
, Carmel High School
Carmel, Indiana
Editors: Grace Zhang
Adviser: Jim Streisel


The Little Hawk
, Iowa City High School
Iowa City, Iowa
Editors: Sofie Lie, Nova Meurice, Sarah Smith
Adviser: Jonathan Rogers


The Budget
, Lawrence High School
Lawrence, Kansas
Editor: Kansas Gibler
Adviser: Barbara Tholen


The Tiger Print
, Blue Valley High School
Overland Park, Kansas
Editors: Courtney Carpenter, Megan Hegarty
Adviser: Michelle Huss


The Express
, Blue Valley Northwest High School
Overland Park, Kansas
Editor: Emma Bruce
Adviser: Jim McCrossen


The Harbinger
, Shawnee Mission East High School
Prairie Village, Kansas
Editors: Ellie Booton, Will Clough, Claire Pottenger
Adviser: Dow Tate


The JagWire
, Mill Valley High School
Shawnee, Kansas
Editors: Madison Ferguson, Margaret Mellott, Braden Shaw
Adviser: Kathy Habiger


The Northwest Passage
, Shawnee Mission Northwest High School
Shawnee, Kansas
Editor: Grace Gorenflo
Adviser: Susan Massy


Paladin
, Kapaun Mount Carmel High School
Wichita, Kansas
Editor: Abbey Fox
Adviser: Elaine Robinson


The Phillipian
, Phillips Academy
Andover, Massachusetts
Editor: Rudd Fawcett
Advisers: Tracy Ainsworth, Neil Fater


Uncaged
, Stockbridge High School
Stockbridge, Michigan
Editor: Emma Lockhart
Adviser: Elizabeth Cyr


Echo
, St. Louis Park High School
St. Louis Park, Minnesota
Editors: Maggie Bahnson, Ethan Brown
Adviser: Lori Keekley


The Rubicon
, St. Paul Academy and Summit School
St. Paul, Minnesota
Editors: Javier Whitaker-Castaneda, Amodhya Samarakoon
Adviser: Kathryn Campbell


The Rock
, Rock Bridge Senior High School
Columbia , Missouri
Editors: Ji-Ho Lee, Kat Sarafianos, Grace Vance
Adviser: Robin Stover


Le Journal
, Notre Dame de Sion High School
Kansas City, Missouri
Editors: Megan Ostrander, Abby Smith
Adviser: Alison Long


The Kirkwood Call
, Kirkwood High School
Kirkwood, Missouri
Editors: Ryan Davidson, Ali Randazzo, Kennady Wade
Adviser: Mitch Eden


Wingspan
, Nixa High School
Nixa, Missouri
Editor: Allison Garrett
Adviser: Beth Eggleston


North Star
, Francis Howell North High School
St. Charles, Missouri
Editor: Carolynn Gonzalez
Adviser: Aaron Manfull


Pilot’s Log
, Hasbrouck Heights High School
Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey
Editors: Maddy Kalmowitz, Vanita Patel, Bharadwaj Chirravuri
Adviser: William Thorne


Wingspan
, West Henderson High School
Hendersonville, North Carolina
Editors: Josh Conner, Charlotte Grush, Sofia Molina
Adviser: Brenda Gorsuch


Legacy Uncut
, Legacy High School
Bismark, North Dakota
Editor: Brian Swanberg
Adviser: Sue Skalicky


Lakota East Spark
, Lakota East High School
Liberty Township, Ohio
Editors: Erinn Aulfinger, Michelle Chu, Emma Stiefel, Lauren Wilson
Adviser: Dean Hume


The Sequoyah Scribe
, John Sevier Middle School
Kingsport, Tennessee
Editors: Harrison Barnes, Molly Turner
Adviser: David Flanary


The Eagle Angle
, Allen High School
Allen, Texas
Editors: Sara Schleede, Megan Shankle
Adviser: Kelly Juntunen


The ReMarker
, St. Mark’s School of Texas
Dallas, Texas
Editor: Case Lowry
Adviser: Ray Westbook


The Fourcast
, The Hockaday School
Dallas, Texas
Editors: Jenny Zhu
Adviser: Ana Rosenthal


Stampede
, Burges High School
El Paso, Texas
Editor: Madeline Ramos
Adviser: Patricia Monroe


The Kinkaid Falcon
, The Kinkaid School
Houston, Texas
Editor: Kirk Hachigian
Adviser: LiAnn Yim


Tiger Times
, Texas High School
Texarkana, Texas
Editors: Raga Justin, Jillian Cheney
Advisers: Rebecca Potter, Clint Smith


The Highlander
, McLean High School
McLean, Virginia
Editors: Bryan Chung, Carlyn Kranking, Ingrid Morse, Melanie Pincus
Adviser: Lindsay Benedict


The Puma Press
, University Prep High School
Seattle, Washington
Editors: Mahir Piyarali, Yoela Zimberoff
Adviser: Dan Perreten


The Scroll
, The American School in London, Middle School
London, England
Adviser: Colin Bridgewater